Path of the Hermit
by DustTilDawn
Summary: Jin Shirato is sent a strange request one day on his forum. Take out the girl whose winning on the most popular online fighting MMO. Intrigued, he challenges her to a fight, but then the match ends in an unexpected way, and a mission to beat her becomes much much more. [A pesudo social link for Jin]
1. Hemlin

**A/N: The spelling is italicized, it's computer writing. When the story is told from Jin's point of view, it's 1st person. When it's Minako, it's third person. Bold is game notifications. 1000** ¥ **is roughly ten dollars.**

* * *

April 26 12:54 AM Waxing Crescent

It's late, but there isn't much to do. Things have been going pretty well lately. My persona is under control. Chidori and Takaya are out but god knows what they do with their free time. It's possible they will come back tonight but they also disappear for days at a time. I never know where they are or what they're doing. You'd think it'd be impossible when three people lived under one roof.

But I digress. An unfinished bomb is sitting on my desk, but I'm not in the mood to finish it. Building explosives is almost a boring task at this point. I have a horde of them sitting in my closet and not much use for it. Takaya said I should always have some handy, and I did, but there was a limit to our storage space. If one of my explosives went off at this point, it would blow the entire building off the map.

I check the Revenge Request website. I made the thing months ago but it was beginning to look more and more like a waste of time. The webpage was exceedingly simple. A black screen with an input box in the middle. Once someone submitted a request, the user's request and IP information went straight to my hard drive. I run it through my database for their contact information and I send them a price for the job.

It was a good way to make a bit of money, but the people on it were so exceedingly stupid. The entire thing was a headache. Most of the requests were about bullies or cheating boyfriends. Easy targets, sure. But why are people so useless? Didn't anyone know how to solve their own problems?

We've been hunting pretty often lately. Takaya and Chidori handle most of them during the Dark Hour. Even now, it's likely they're out working. I don't leave the house. I'm awkward enough to attract people's attention. While Chidori and Takaya also stick out, they're much stronger and faster than I am. I'm not as fast with a gun, and my grenades attract too much attention. They cause too much damage.

So I stick to my computer. Besides, someone needed to man the base. I'm about to take a quick nap when a request catches my eye.

" _Wipe out the new girl on Hemelin and make sure she never comes back."_

The IP address tells me the requester is an older guy who lives down the street. I've seen him a few times while throwing out trash. Older bachelor. Works full time maintenance at the movie theater. Waste of oxygen. I send him a price for the job.

10,000¥.

My phone pings me almost immediately after I send out the price. Half the money's been deposited into our account. Clean.

Easiest job in the world.

Hemelin is an online fighting MMO that I play on occasion. The server is almost full when I log in, way more active than anything I've ever seen. There are avatars on top of each other, literally glitching because of the server load. My computer specs were the best money (and threats) could buy, but even THAT wasn't enough to handle whatever the hell was happening.

 _"What's going on?"_

My speech bubble is lost in the hundreds of other comments in the open world log. I give up on trying to ask a question and focus on the chat instead.

 _~"NO WAY BRO KNOCK HER OUT"_

 _~"shes a girl? pm me."_

 _~"No way. Has to be bot. Her account is new and she's in 56_ _th_ _place."_

 _~"No one's ever climbed that fast before."_

 _~"hacxx"_

 _~"add me"'_

 _~''pm me'_

 _~"ive been reporting her for hours. nothing."_

 _~"legit?"_

 _~"~~~~add me~~~~~~~"_

 _~"YOUR GETTING REKT"_

 _~"No Way."_

 _~"yo, check her friend list its 0 shesa bot"_

 _~"pics or it didntt happen"_

 _~"ADDED"_

 _~"SHUT UP!"_

 _~''Just play the game."_

The wall of text repeats the same information for miles. It doesn't take a genius to put the pieces together. Someone new was playing arena and they were winning. This hasn't happened for a while. The top 20 has always been the same 24 or so people. They shifted depending on the time of day but it has always been the same set. Yours truly occupies the 11th spot with an iron fist.

But a girl huh. Now that WAS unheard of. My logical mind tells me she probably wasn't a girl though. A lot of fat old men use female avatars to cheat idiots out of a few gift codes. It wouldn't be too surprising if one of the top 10 created a new female avatar to steal the spotlight because they were bored with real life. Now that the idea occurred to me, I wonder why I've never done it.

I try quick travelling to the arena, but the area is capped out. I give up on it after a few tries. It'll empty after the fight ends. I work on my bomb for a few minutes before my computer pings to let me know my "watched" fight has ended.

It takes a bit of work, but I can see that there is a girl avatar with the golden badge above her head, signaling an arena win. The sight nearly makes me drop my bomb.

 **Congratulations**

KotoneShiomi22 has beaten WorldEnder6969 +12,789 Prestige

Rank 56 = Rank 24

WorldEnder6969 has lost to KotoneShiomi22 -12,789 Prestige

Rank 1 = Rank 4

That stupid American has held top spot for years. Literal, actual, off-line years. He was logged on pretty much 24 hours of the day, playing. He even had a video blog dedicated to his games that I would occasionally watch if I was feeling especially masochistic.

The American requests a rematch, and the new girl is quick to oblige. I had about 4 seconds to get into this room before it filled up. It's the fastest I have ever moved in my life.

Let me take a minute to explain the game first. There are combos, abilities and moves you can acquire by base race which you pick when designing your avatar. The others you win by fighting different opponents. There are hundreds to choose from so everyone's character is pretty much unique. There is a 5 skill cap per match but older players almost always had an advantage because they had more time to expand their skillset and pick and choose their skills to their advantage. New players can acquire skills from specific events and quests but it is a lot more work than fighting. The entire process is too time-consuming when the guys at the top just picks up the flocks of sheep and devours their powers. (I was one of those guys at the top of course.)

That was why this new girl had caused a ruckus. No one. And I mean no one is capable of climbing the ranks like this. Until now. Whoever she was, had completely broken the meta.

The match begins like normal. A 3 second count down followed by by players taking off into the air. She fights like she has all the health in the world. She doesn't dodge or guard. Every strike, bullet, and missile takes a chunk out of her health bar. It drops faster than any reasonable player should ever allow. She's about to lose, when I finally understand her strategy. She'd picked up BERSERK at some point and her attack power only got stronger when she took damage. That wouldn't be enough to assure her victory, but she'd also picked MIRACLE SHIELD and BLOODY RAMPAGE. Her health couldn't fall past 1 for 10 seconds, and her speed would quadruple when her health was in the bottom 1%.

I could only sit there in shock. No one used Bloody Rampage. It was such a risky skill to be running, especially when there were so many other choices to pick from. Who on earth was this girl? The match was over before her 10 second ability was up. The entire stadium is transported back to the open world and a new win trophy has appeared over her head.

 **Congratulations**

KotoneShiomi22 has beaten WorldEnder6969 +10,357 Prestige

Rank 24 = Rank 18

WorldEnder6969 has lost to KotoneShiomi22 -10,357 Prestige

Rank 4 = Rank 12

Trophy acquired - 100 game win streak. Golden Award

He'd dropped passed even me. I check my own ranking and I'd jumped up one. This would've been excellent news had I not been so terrified and excited at the same time. Who was this girl? Where the hell did she come from?

The American logs off and the open chat wall loses all semblance of control. Thousands of PM requests and conversations left and right, but not a single person challenges her to another fight. Anyone ranked 20 and above is pretty easy to get a hold of. They would need to be online pretty often or their rank would fall. The 16-other people above her were likely all online at this moment.

I check my clock. 2:04 AM Takaya and Chidori still haven't come home yet. I had some time. This was clearly the girl that the request talked about. I send her a chat invite.

* * *

Minako Arisato is sitting cross-legged at her desk, her head drooping out of her palm. She lets out a loud yawn, a piece of her auburn hair falling into her mouth before she quickly spits it back out. She was getting tired. Junpei had given her the game as a present because he couldn't win. She'd been going at it for several hours but didn't see much appeal. Sure, she was winning, but it wasn't nearly as hard as she'd expected to climb the rankings. She had looked up the complete ability list earlier and started making combos that looked nice together. After about 40 minutes, she'd had a solid list and she'd been winning ever since.

The thought of quitting occurred to her, but no one else at the dorm played video games and Junpei told her the hard copy costs around 5,000¥. That was a lot of money she didn't want to waste. It also helped that she didn't have class the next day so staying in and playing games seemed nice.

Truthfully, she'd moved into the dorms about two weeks ago, and while the others were nice, they weren't quite friends. Minako looked to her door and imagined the other people she'd met. They were comrades, but not much else. No one talked around the dorm except about missions and the shadows they would need to face.

 _*Bing*_ The loud noise woke her up immediately and she returned her eyes to her screen.

 **ShiroiTobira has sent you a Chat Request. Will you accept?**

Minako sighed. There were a lot of these, and it was beginning to annoy her. She didn't know any of these people, why would they want to be friends? She quickly hit reject and contemplated logging off, but then another bubble immediately appeared on her screen.

 **ShiroiTobira has sent you a Battle Request. Will you accept?**

Minako checked his player ranking, mildly surprised. She was looking for the other players who were ranked above her, but she wasn't quite sure how that system worked yet. The player guide wasn't very helpful.

She accepted without a second thought, and they were thrown to the pre-fight skill pick. She knew nothing about him so she went for her safest combinations. The three second countdown started and the fight began. Her fingers flew across the keyboard, jumping and shooting at her enemy. Her opponent didn't seem to try to advance, letting the timer run down.

No matter how often she hit him, his health bar wouldn't go down. It seemed like he had a counter for everything. He didn't make any moves to attack her either. Not a single punch, kick, or energy blast. What was this guy doing? Didn't he want to win?

After what seemed like a full hour, a large 30 flashed across her screen. She had 30 seconds left?! Her health bar was full, and so was his. A part of her was surprised he hadn't been hit at least once, but most of her mind was focused on the game. This had actually been kind of fun. Sure, there wasn't any real fighting, but it had been like target practice. A logic puzzle that she hasn't solve. She clearly wasn't as good as she previously thought if the guy ranked 10 could dodge everything she threw at him.

The battle clock continued to wind down until it hit zero, leaving her dumbfounded. She hadn't looked this far into the game. What would happen now?

 **Tied Game**

KotoneShiomi22 has tied with ShiroiTobira +0 Prestige

Rank 18 = Rank 18

ShiroiTobira has tied with KotoneShiomi22 +0 Prestige

Rank 10 = Rank 10

They two of them are transferred back to the starter field with all the NPCs and Minako slams her head onto her desk, before quickly pulling herself back up. She hadn't meant to cause a ruckus, but that had been a good fight. Completely tiring though. Sleep was calling to her.

She moves her mouse to the battle window and found the name she was looking for, sending him a friend request. Her clock read that it was almost 3AM in the morning. Even if she didn't have class, it was a horrible idea to stay up so late.

Water. She needed water. The walk down to the kitchen feels much longer than it should. The dorm is dark. All the lights are on dim to conserve energy. The Dark Hour is long over, but the regular taste of fear still creeps up her spine. It had taken so much from her. But then it brought her back, to the one place she could fight the nightmares. And she would fight. Fight and win. She'd found her reason for living.

When she gets back to her room, the first thing she sees is a message on a private chat log.

~" _gg"_

Confusion is the only thing that colors her thoughts. A quick search tells her that the letters were a simple greeting gamers used after a match. Easy enough to understand.

 _"You too."_

 _~"japanese huh? are you new here? how'd you climb up the rankings so fast?"_

 _"Yes. I started earlier in the afternoon. I looked up some guides online and found some really good combinations for my race class."_

 _~"lol. seriously? do you know how mad people would be knowing that's how you're winning?"_

 _"What do you mean? Why would they be mad about that?"_

Minako puts down her mug, a frown on her face. This is silly. It was just a game. Other people would win and they'd come back and beat her tomorrow. Wasn't that how games worked?

~" _because there's no guide for real life. it's like cheating. people grind for years to make it where you are now but after a day some girl just runs in with the knowledge other people acquired and ruins something they've spent years to build. wouldn't you be mad?_ "

Minako's fingers pause in the air. She wasn't sure if she'd be angry. In a way, she'd been flighty her entire life. She never had to work very hard at anything. There was always a "cheat code". A methodology to follow. A guide to light the path. She needed good grades for a scholarship? Study certain parts for the exams. Teachers almost always point out what they're putting on exams beforehand. Need to stay in shape? Go running or stop eating ramen. Both, if she was especially desperate. If she wanted more people to like her, all she'd need to do was smile and nod at whatever they were saying. Easy. Life was like a video game where the guide was built into her mind. Everything followed a logical pattern cause and effect. Nothing left up to chance. There was no "living" involved.

 _"If they didn't want me to win, then why did they put up a page telling me everything I needed to know?"_

~" _it's just for clicks. everyone knows how to win the game but they can't win it for themselves. so when they see someone else using their knowledge to do what they can't, that pisses them off."_

The cup stops halfway to her mouth. People want attention. That's natural. Everyone wants to be in the spotlight. A star in the sky. Everyone knows how to do it, but they can't. They're not smart enough. Not fast enough. Not strong enough. Not pretty enough. The reasons go on and on. People get jealous and vengeful when others can do what they can't. Minako knows this, but she tries not to think about it. What's the point? Knowing why people hate her won't stop it from happening. Nothing will change.

" _So what about you?_ "

 _~"what about me?"_

 _"How do you feel about me?"_

 _~"might is right. if you win, then it doesn't matter if it was because you were smarter or stronger. what matters is that you won."_

 _"Neither of us won today."_

 _~"there's always next week. same time?"_

Minako looks at her clock.

 _"Maybe a little earlier. It's pretty late."_

 _~"11pm?"_

 _"Sure."_


	2. Rank 1

**A/N: I want to thank Riva for their review. It's been 6 years since the original game so the fact that someone, anyone is reading this story makes me ridiculously happy and gives me all the motivation to write, so you're the real MVP. Thanks for the support.**

* * *

May 2nd 10:54pm Half-Moon Rank 1

For the twentieth time tonight, I glance at my clock and immediately regret it. I'd spent the last week replaying our conversation in my head, and it wasn't even a long one. Twenty sentences at most. I had known she was Japanese just from looking at her username, but everything about her bugged me. She didn't talk like someone who played video games. She didn't talk like a kid or even a teenager. If anything, she sounded like a bot. But then, who made her? For what reason?

I sigh. Takaya and Chidori could both tell something was wrong, but neither of them said a word. I'd gotten all my work done so there wouldn't be any complaints, but this was bothering me more than it was bothering them. I should've been able to handle this mission without any problems, so what the hell was all this?

I swivel in my chair, looking at the girl sleeping in my bed behind me. Chidori wouldn't wake up for another hour. She has a mission tonight, but there was a good amount of time before she needed to leave. The Dark Hour was the only time we could commit crimes. Any injuries our victims sustain disappear after the hour is over. A murder without the evidence.

Chidori has her own room, but no bed. The only furniture in there consists of a wardrobe for her clothes and art supplies. She could do anything from drawing to sculpting. To be honest, sometimes I wonder why she chose to be a criminal. Her sketches are pretty good and her water colors could probably go in art galleries if some uptight critic saw them. It also helped that she could auto-heal pretty much any wound. She cuts herself up pretty badly when she does woodwork.

I sigh again. My eyes keep drifting to the clock no matter how much I will myself not to look. This was getting ridiculous. I didn't wait for things; certainly not people. There isn't enough time in the world for all the waiting I'm doing tonight.

* _Bing_ * My aggravation disappears entirely and I immediately swivel back to my computer, the adrenaline rushing in my veins. All of these reactions are unnatural. I know that, but I can't stop it. What the hell was this feeling?

The alert is from a chat notification.

~ _"Hello. Sorry I'm late. Do you want to get started?"_

Seriously, who talked like that online? Was she someone's grandma or something? Every statistic in the world tells me she's a bot, but my gut says something different. I'm smiling. That's weird. I don't smile. What the hell is wrong with me? I take a deep breath, and the emotion immediately disappears. Nothing. I don't feel anything.

I send her a battle request, and we're immediately sent to the arena. We were given one minute to pick our skillset, and I get to work. She was a really aggressive fighter, but I was able to counter pretty well in our last match. My goal then had been to get her attention, now, it was to win.

We enter the match, and I realize immediately: She is crazy. As soon as the counter starts, she charges at me. The girl is playing Rush, a mostly useless skill. While it made you faster and pretty much quadrupled your attack, you couldn't stop or turn.

I sent off a million Homing Projectiles, in her direction while I backed away, but she'd starts Teleporting. Another useless skill because you couldn't control, where you reappeared. That clearly didn't bother her when she was just randomly attacking from every direction. I almost laughed. This girl was beyond smart. Reckless as hell, but smart. Definitely a bot.

The time left in the fight dwindles. Her HP was going down slowly. My missiles always kept chipping away at her health, but she'd smash into me every so often and I'd lose a giant chunk of my life. This fight had turned into a game of chance more than anything else.

Before I know it, we are transported back to the open world. The open world chat is a mess of comments. People were going ballistic.

 **Congratulations**

ShiroiTobira has beaten KotoneShiomi22 +1,212 Prestige

Rank 10 = Rank 10

KotoneShiomi22 has lost to ShiroiTobira -1,212 Prestige

Rank 32 = Rank 33

 _~"the queen finally lost!"_

 _~"YO! ABOUT TIME"_

 _~"add me girl ill make you feel better"_

 _~"haxx"_

 _~"It's just luck. She'll win next time"_

 _~"really though. did you watch that fight? it was insane"_

 _~"ADD MEE"_

 _~"pm me"_

The masses were idiots, I've known that forever. But this was ridiculous. The entire fight had been a matter of luck but she'd probably known that from the beginning. Her skillset told me she didn't care about losing. I sent her a message.

 _"gg wanna move somewhere else?"_

 _~"How do I do that?"_

 _"press M to open the map. click the area you want to go to. i'll meet you in left gamick. bottom left corner"_

I warp first, just in time to hear Chidori move behind me. I minimize my screen, opening the Revenge Request Website. Why did I minimize my screen? There was nothing to hide. Chidori knows I play video games sometimes, but more than that, I was working. What was I trying to hide?

I hand her the mission details without looking at her. "I left your dinner on the table."

She grabs the notes without saying a word. This is normal behavior for the two of us. Chidori has a soft voice, and she rarely spoke but we spent a great deal of time together. She generally slept in my room, and when she did talk, it was normally to me. Every so often, maybe once in a blue moon, she'd ask me a strange question and we'd go into an inconceivably deep discussion. I pitied the guy who'd meet her tonight. He wasn't a bad dude. Just turned down a rich girl.

Left Gamick is empty. The only thing in the area is a grind tower. Expert quests can be done here, if people bothered to do them. The open world chat here is also much slower. The last time anyone had sent a message was six days ago.

 _~"I like it here"_

 _"figured. get a lot of weirdos sending you shit i'm guessing?"_

 _~"Yes."_

 _"you did pretty well. you play like you don't care about winning."_

 _~"That's because I don't"_

That should've made me angry, but it didn't. Video games are a test of skill. It's a mixture of natural talent and practice. All for the sake of winning, but here was someone who treated it like all that meant nothing. She didn't care at all that she was taking a dump on everyone's hard work and for what? Why?

 _"then why play?"_

 _~ "We already have the game. It feels like a waste if I don't."_

 _"that's idiotic. why waste time on something you don't want or need to do?"_

She doesn't respond for a minute, and I check the clock again. It was midnight. The Dark Hour. That made sense. Normal people couldn't move during the Dark Hour. She was probably stuck in a coffin at home. I walk into the kitchen to grab a glass of water. This had been a bad idea. I'd need to wait an hour for her to answer me. Next time, I'd message her during the day.

* * *

Minako was frustrated. A half-eaten sandwich is sitting in front of her. The Dark Hour stopped all electronics, rendering her computer more or less useless, not that it mattered. The guy she'd been talking to probably couldn't answer her anyway. Frozen in a coffin in his room.

She sighed, taking another bite of her sandwich.

"Hi, how've you been?"

Minako jerked her head to her bed where a boy with blue eyes and black hair is staring at her. All of her combat reflexes flare before she recognizes him in the dark glow. She lets go of her naginata, bracing her signature weapon against the wall. She knew she should've been scared, but she wasn't. He felt familiar to her, like she'd known him her whole life. Plus, this was their third meeting. Even if he hadn't been familiar before, he sure was now.

"Hello again. I'm alright. Kinda hungry. What about you? What are you up to, creepy little boy?"

"I just came to tell you that there will be a full moon in a week. You should be careful. There will be a new ordeal awaiting you." He was smiling as he talked. It was serene and passive. He was a pleasant-looking boy. The fact that he kept popping up when no one was around was creepy as hell but that was pretty much the limit of his weirdness. Easy enough to ignore.

"What kind of ordeal?" Minako was almost certain he meant another giant Shadow, but it was better to ask.

"The full moon will bring your greatest challenges. You must prepare for those, but time is of the essence. I'm sure you're aware."

"Very." Minako rolled her eyes. She'd been playing a game, but she'd also been studying for her exams. Everyone kept reminding her that life was too short. She was VERY aware of how easily it could end but the thought didn't terrify her.

Minako wasn't suicidal. She didn't want Death. Didn't ask for it anyway. But she often put herself in situations that walked that fine line. Creepy, dangerous, strange. That's what the other children called her before she learned to smile. After she learned to hide herself, everything became a game. Win or lose, the game always ends. People moved on. Time never stops moving except for the dead.

The boy on her bed chuckles at her sarcasm. "I'll see you again when it's over. Goodbye for now."

"Goodbye strange boy who appears in my room." Minako waves as he disappears, taking the Dark Hour with him. Her computer finally boots up her game again so she can read the man's message.

 _~"that's idiotic. why waste time on something you don't want to do?"_

 _"I don't mind playing, and there's nothing I really want to do. Do you know what I mean?"_

 _~"no"_

Minako's fingers hover over the keyboard. This was difficult. She wasn't sure if she could explain this properly. How could she explain that she didn't know what she wanted, or that she didn't have dreams? How could she tell someone she didn't even know that she wasn't afraid of death because to live meant having a future, and she had none.

 _"There's nothing in particular that I like doing, so playing this game is the same as doing anything else. It's the same as doing nothing."_

 _~"lol. you're so boring. don't you have any friends?"_

Minako smiled. He was probably trying to make a joke, but the idea that he'd feel guilty after this was also kind of funny. Imagining some poor fool somewhere squirming felt kind of good.

 _"No"_

He didn't answer for several minutes, and Minako thought that maybe she'd pushed her not-joke too far. She placed her head on her arms, contemplating what to say to him. She didn't have friends, not really. People liked her. They talked to her. Told her secrets. Some even asked her to go with them to places, but none of them dug any deeper than the surface. None of them saw passed the facade that controlled nearly every aspect of her life. Almost everything she did was based on what would give her the most amusing result, like she was living life on a whim, detached from her body and the choices she made.

 _*Bing*_

She looks up to see a new message on her screen.

~ _"do you want a friend?"_

She looked at the question and blanked. What was this guy talking about? Friends? When was the last time she had friends? Years ago. Before she forgot how to smile. Before everything crashed and burned around her. Did she want friends? Did she want to go through that kind of pain again?

 _"Yes."_

 _~"then we're friends."_

* * *

I'm screaming, literally screaming at my desk. Why the hell did I say that? I run my hand through my hair, sweeping it back from my forehead. This is insane. She probably thinks I'm some insane freak. I'm pretty much ready to throw something out the window and blow up the neighborhood. Someone probably already reported me for being a public disturbance. No one says shit like this. What the hell am I doing?

 _*Bing*_

 _~"Thank you. That made me smile."_

My face is hot. I'm blushing. Good Tsukiyomi, what was happening to me? Oh dear god. Embarrassed. Me? Over a girl who was probably actually a fat man eating ramen cups while locked up in his apartment. No. Even worse. Embarrassed because a bot was working some weird set of pre-programmed lines on me. This couldn't be happening. Why was I so compelled to answer her as if she was a real person?

 _"you're welcome."_

~" _Do you want to meet up sometime? I live in Iwatodai City. Port Island. What about you?"_

My entire body freezes in fear. It takes 3 minutes of intense deep breathing before I can get my mind under some semblance of control. There's a logical explanation for all of this. Someone must've hacked my system and used Hemelin to trick me. A trap. The Revenge website was just the beginning. My account wasn't linked to the website but a super computer could make it through all my proxies to find my IP for both. It's possible the police were on to me. It's also possible the Kirijo group found us as well. Either way, I would need to prepare countermeasures.

 _"same"_

She doesn't answer for a long time. It was possible didn't know who I was, and as a bot, it was taking her a long time to calculate the best course of action depending on my reactions. Did she know who I was? Was this another part of her elaborate trap? This entire thing had gone from slightly entertaining to downright nerve-wracking. I had to strike first. Set up a plan.

 _"do you want to meet up next saturday, iwatodai station? 3pm?"_

Someone kill me. There was no way she would say yes. Even if she did say yes, she'd just bail at the last minute. She would say she had something she needed to do so I would never be able to see her face. The programming would allow nothing else and in my haste, I was giving myself away.

 _~"I have class. Can you do Sunday at noon? I like to get a head start on my day."_

That surprised me for a minute. So she was at least pretending to be a student of some kind even though she didn't talk like one. Either high school or college then. I run some scenarios in my head. I wouldn't have a lot of time to set up my equipment, but if I woke up a little earlier, that might do it.

" _okay_ "

 _~"What should I be looking out for?"_

It occurred to me that I should lie, but what if she already knew I was lying? How would that play out? What if she really was this naive and idiotic, and she walked up to some guy who matched the description and was sold off to the black market. What would I do then? Every scenario runs through my head, before I settle on the truth.

 _"green jacket, blue pants, hair, and eyes. but i wear glasses so you probably won't be able to tell. look for a silver briefcase."_

 _~"Okay. I'll be wearing a red scarf, and red headphones. My hair is brown but it looks red sometimes. My eyes are red too, so I guess look for a lot of red. I'll see you Sunday. Goodnight!"_

She logs off before I could get another word in. This girl was either a very well programmed bot or she was really idiotic. I couldn't tell which. I read her description again, trying to picture someone who might look like that, but nothing comes to mind. My instincts keep telling me it's actually a fat old guy, and to not expect much but I can feel something in me shifting. Something that I thought was long dead: desire.


	3. Lies and Deceit

**A/N: I'd like to thank the unnamed Guest and Proxy Saga's continued support. Your reviews are my everything.**

* * *

May 10 11:56AM Waning Gibbous

Minako was exhausted. The weird boy in her bedroom had been right. The night before had been a full moon, and the entire thing had been chaotic. A monorail had been hijacked and would've caused a gas explosion if she hadn't stopped it.

The Shadow had been large, much bigger than anything else she had ever faced. The thing she'd fought that first night she arrived was close, but her personas did most of the work that night. It was nothing compared to the monorail Shadow.

Iwatodai station was usually busy. People were walking to and fro. Couples liked to come here for movies or go into town using the train. She watched them fondly. It felt like years ago that she was on that train going to the dorm.

She listened to her internet buddy. She'd met a few girls on the volleyball team, the student council, and the library committee. The past week was spent running around school signing up for as many clubs as she could. It was tiring, but she could feel that time was moving again. Minutes, hours, days, she would count them now, trying to make the most of her time. Her parents would be proud. If only for this one year.

The station isn't crowded even though it was the weekend. Flowers are blooming in perfect squares behind her. The benches are empty except for herself and an elderly couple. Minako closes her eyes, letting the sun hit her face.

Even if nothing else went right today, she wanted to thank this person. Friends. The word still sounded shallow. The way she felt about the new people she'd met wasn't anything close to how she'd felt, about the people she loved, but maybe someday. Maybe someday she'd love her new friends as much as she'd loved the people she'd lost.

"Hey cutie." She opens her eyes only to see two strange men looking at her. One of them is average-looking, with a forgettable face and brown hair. The other is in a button-up and tie. Neither is who she's looking for.

"Hello, can I help you?" Minako could feel herself entering auto-response mode. On any other day, she might give them a semblance of her attention, for amusement if nothing else. But not today. She was too tired, and both of them were as boring as them come.

"Are you here waiting for someone? We could show you a good time." The guy with the tie sits down next to her, putting an arm behind her. Minako glances at it briefly, making a few notes. He seems fit. Not like Akihiko, but fit enough to put up a fight. It was best not to be stuck between the two should she need to break one of their arms.

She stands up, kneeing the other man's leg joints as she does so. "Sorry about that. You were just so close. I didn't mean to hurt you." She pauses for a moment, putting her hand over her mouth for that surprised damsel look. "My friend is very late, but he should be here soon. I would appreciate it if you left me alone."

Her patience for these people was wearing very thin.

* * *

I've been watching her from the train platform for about 30 minutes. I'm mostly hidden from view with my laptop but she could probably see me if she looked hard enough. I'm in my signature green jacket and everything about me fits the description I give her.

She's prettier than I could've imagined, not that I imagined her at all. Whenever I tried, I could only think of fat old men. Not the most pleasant image. My week had been spent working and trying to find her username in other locations. The entire attempt was a failure, and the more I failed, the more I was convinced, she was a bot. Not once in a million years would I have imagined a petite high school girl.

She'd arrived roughly 5 minutes after I'd set up my computer. I spotted her right away. She was right about the hair. It did look red, but only when the sun hit her at just the right angle. I took a couple pictures with my phone and checked a few databases. Most of it came up empty, but I finally found what I was looking for in a government junkyard.

I kept glancing in her direction as I dug around. Random things came up but nothing valuable.

I sigh again, closing my laptop. Was she really the girl I'd been talking to? She wasn't an old man, a spy, or some hacker who'd found out about the Dark Hour and our schemes?

Her name was one of the first things I found. Minako Arisato.

The next time I glance in her direction, she isn't alone. Two men are milling around her, one of them sitting on the bench next to her. She has a polite smile on her face, but there's something dark in her expression, as if she's not really there at all. Her eyes keep drifting to key points in her companions. Arms, legs, joints.

Looking at them made my blood boil. I almost leave my hiding spot when she abruptly stands up, knocking back the guy who is still standing. She manages to walk out from their circle, but they're still looming over her. My gut clenches at the sight. Even with the polite smile on her face, all of my hazard warnings are going off. This girl is dangerous.

She bows, before swiftly turning away. Was she leaving? I needed to follow her. My hands fumble as I try to pack up my computer into my suitcase.

"Hey!" The man's shout rings across the plaza, and I freeze in the midst of my packing. They weren't done with her. One of them reaches out to grab her arm, but she's already moved out of the way, tripping him in the process. She then proceeds to slam the heel of her sneaker onto his hand. I freeze. A normal girl wouldn't have done that. Couldn't possibly have done that. His bones are definitely broken.

The other one grabs her hair, using it as leverage as he pulls her to him. Without missing a beat, she swings herself around, throwing her elbow up perfectly under the chin. He falls back, tearing out a few long strands of her hair. She doesn't even look fazed. That had to hurt. Why wasn't she screaming? Asking for help? What the hell was going on?

Everyone stops in whatever they're doing to watch her. The first guy is crying, straddling a broken hand. The other looks like he fainted when he fell down. She'd gotten a bit of dirt and blood on her clothes, but she was mostly unharmed. There is a small, polite smile on her face. "I'm sorry to have done that. Have a nice weekend."

She ties her hair back up again, and walks away. She doesn't look back. Not even once.

* * *

Minako spends the rest of her morning talking to an elderly couple at a bookstore before returning home. They were fairly nice. The old man seemed to think she would marry his son someday. Minako didn't have the heart to remind him that their son was long gone.

When she'd made it home, she flopped onto her bed immediately, not bothering to change. Akihiko made a small attempt to try and talk to her, but she moved passed him quickly. Explaining her haphazard appearance would just tire her out even more. She was already exhausted to begin with, but battling it out with those two men had drained her beyond measure. The day had been a disaster. She looks over at her computer.

ShiroTobira.

He didn't showed up today. She stomps over to the computer before she realizes she's angry. It had been a long time since she'd felt that emotion. Things didn't faze her, so why had this? Why was she so angry? Hemelin booted up, but she didn't sign in. All of her information was ready to go; her fingers hover over the 'Enter' button.

Had their conversation been a joke to him?

Minako puts her computer back to sleep, running past Yukari to the bathroom. A shower first, and then she'd wonder what to do about him later.

* * *

I'm still processing everything that I've seen when I make it home. My mind tells me that I needed to follow the girl. I needed to know more about her. I am sure at this point that she is a spy. Either for the authorities or for Kirijo. Everything is too convenient. She is a great fighter, pretty, AND smart? That's just outrageous. A normal civilian didn't possess all three of those qualities. If she captured me, Strega would fall apart. Every step mattered from this point onward.

Both Takaya and Chidori are home and awake when I return. A surprise waiting in the kitchen. Takaya seems to be going over some notes and waves me over when I walk through the door. "Excellent. I was waiting for you to come home, Jin. Are you hungry?"

"Yeah." I grab a bowl of rice from the cooker before joining Chidori at our small table. It was rare for the three of us to eat together. Our sleep schedules were too different. "What do you need?"

He shows me the plans for a large heist and then throws a stack of photos at me. "We're going to rob this house but first, I want you and Chidori to dig up as much as you can on these people.

I shuffle through them quickly before I see her: Minako Arisato. In the photo, she's at the train station with a confused look on her face and a piece of paper in her hand. She's looking over her shoulder like she's not sure where she is. The sky is green behind her. The Dark Hour. I immediately stop eating. "Who are these people?"

Takaya smiles, sitting down and pointing to a few of the photos he's taken. "Persona users like us, but they feel no pain when they activate them. I want to know everything you two can dig up about them."

Chidori nods, eyeing me briefly before grabbing the last piece of pickled tofu. Minako Arisato again. This couldn't be a coincidence. Too many things concerned her. I nod as well, stuffing my face as quickly as possible.

Takaya disappears right after dinner. Chidori leaves soon after. I do my work, looking into the photos Takuya gave me. They turn up surprising results. Minako Arisato gives me little but once I find the others, it's easy to connect the dots. All of them were students at Gekkoukan High and live in the same dorm. The oldest girl was Mitsuru Kirijo. The name sends hatred shooting through my veins. She was the heir of the Kirijo Group.

Those bastards. A bottle of pills are sitting on my desk. There were identical bottles everywhere in the apartment. Takaya made them in his room in his free time. Master of drugs and chemicals. We took them regularly. We all needed to or our personas could kill us. They could go berserk at any moment and it was all because of them: the Kirijo Group. We would all die, because of them.

I push the memories from my mind. Takaya always said that living in the past or for the future was pointless. What mattered was the here and now, and right now I needed to talk to the girl. Takaya gave me a mission, and I would get her to talk. I log onto Hemelin but she's in an Arena Match.

When she materializes in the open world, I can see a new banner above her head.

Congratulations

KotoneShiomi22 has beaten MiyoshiMusashi93 +5,789 Prestige

Rank 18 = Rank 17

MiyoshiMusashi93 has lost to KotoneShiomi22 -5,789 Prestige

Rank 3 = Rank 5

How long had she been playing? I haven't seen her on all week and then, all of a sudden, she's in the top 20 again. Before I have a chance to process what I'm seeing, she disappears from the open world. I open my friend's list instead. I have a lot of other people on it, but her name is sitting at the top. She was in Left Gammick. Waiting for me then.

 _"hey"_

 _~"You didn't come."_

No small talk? There wasn't an ounce of romantic tension in this girl. I liked that.

 _~"Why?"_

 _"i did come. i saw you."_

She doesn't answer me immediately. Probably wondering how likely it was that I was lying, or maybe wondering if she'd seen me in the crowd.

 _~"Where were you?"_

 _"i saw you beat up those two dudes. you're a good fighter."_

I realize how creepy and weird I sound immediately after hitting enter. There is no limit to the awkwardness of a modern hikkikomori.

 _~"Were you scared of me?"_

 _"no."_

 _~"Then you should've come over."_

 _"next time. promise"_

There would need to be a next time. The request on the Revenge Website should've been done. I beat her, but she came back. Clearly for me. As arrogant as that sounded, it also spelled the truth. If we met up offline, she'd probably stop playing, but what about Takaya? He wanted me to learn more about her, and I would do just that.

 _"can you meet me next week?"_

 _~"I have exams."_

 _"i'll help you study."_

She doesn't answer, clearly surprised. I am too. Where did that come from? I don't study. I never even went to school. After a minute or two, I finally get a response.

 _~"Okay."_

 _"wakatsu? i'll pay to make up for today."_

 _~"That sounds good."_

 _"next Sunday. noon. don't be late."_

 _~"You better come this time, or I'll hunt you down and beat you to death."_

It sounded like a joke, but after what I saw today, I wondered if she could actually do it. Probably. I guess I should've been afraid.


	4. Rank 2

May 17 11:46AM Half-Moon Rank 2

She is standing against the railing in front of the Wakatsu when I walk up to her. She's wearing a pastel orange blouse and a large bag is slung over her shoulder. A small orange flip phone is in her right hand. She's looking down, sending a text to someone else. I had Chidori scan the building and a two block radius before I showed up. Her scans came up empty, but there was still a chance she missed something. We didn't take chances.

I have my briefcase with me, armed to the brim with explosives. If any of her comrades showed up, I'd blow the building into high heaven. No one would make it out alive. Chidori is sketching outside, keeping an eye on the place in case of trouble.

Minako Arisato doesn't turn at my approach. I tap her lightly on the shoulder and her eyes snap in my direction. They're brown. Like dried blood. But under the sun they seem to glow red, like rubies.

Her eyes check my pants, my jacket, and then my eyes. After she is satisfied, a smile instantly appears on her face. "Hello. My name is Minako Arisato. You can call me Minako or Arisato if that makes you uncomfortable." she offers a little bow before sticking out her hand for me to shake.

Her hands are calloused, not at all girly. Even Chidori had soft hands. "I'm Jin Shirato."

"Shirato…san?" No one has ever called me that before. Both Takaya and Chidori called me Jin and the people in the Kirijo group... I didn't talk about them but they called me a different name altogether. I kind of liked this new title. By the smile on her face, she seemed to enjoy it as well.

We walk into the restaurant, each of us getting a platter. I have plenty of money. More than I ever thought I would as a kid. Spending a couple thousand yen on food means nothing.

The moment we put our order in, the Arisato girl pulls several large textbooks out of her bag. I eye them suspiciously "What are you doing?"

She gives me a quizzical look, cocking her head like a bird. "You said you would help me study. Exams are next week and I haven't finished all my practice problems."

"I…" I was smart, but I didn't know jack about what they taught in school. Never stepped foot in a traditional classroom in my life. I highly doubt my experience in the Kirijo labs would do any good here. What the hell did I do now? A pencil case. A workbook showing a teacher in front of a chalkboard. Typical things any student would have. All of it is foreign to me. All I can do is stare.

"Japanese, first." She pulls out a green workbook, and all conversation ceases. There is no issue at all. Every so often her eyebrows will knit together in concentration, and she'll open up a different notebook to cross reference something. She doesn't ask me for help. Even if there is something giving her difficulty, she'll simply stare at it for several minutes as if the answer is buried somewhere deep in her mind if only she waits long enough.

Watching her work is interesting. Her head is pressed really close to the table when she writes. She holds her pencil tightly, as if it can be turned into a weapon at any time. She has trouble not smudging the paper, uncharacteristic for a girl. She is a fast reader. Her red eyes flit across the pages with incredible speed as she skims her textbook for the answer. Her face is prettier up close.

She eats her platter slowly, putting a bite into her mouth every few minutes. I look around the restaurant, moving as little as possible. No enemies in sight. The restaurant isn't exactly crowded. None of the other patrons seem suspicious at all. Many of them order and leave. I take mental notes in case someone might appear more than once. I find nothing. All around us are normal customers, a few teenagers enjoying their weekend. Was this girl really here just to study?

"Shirato-san." What was this girl's plan? What did she want? An elderly couple had been staring at her earlier. Had they been comrades in disguise? It was possible, but the man had walked with a limp that seemed natural enough. Had that been an act to make him lower his guard? "Shirato san!"

My eyes snap onto hers. They're close. Too close. She's leaning over the table; her eyes huge as they stare into my own. In my haste to get away, I forget that I'm sitting.

 _*Bam*_

The chair falls to the floor with a slam, bringing my body with it. The girl immediately gets out of her seat to pull me up, "Oh my god. I'm so sorry. Are you okay?"

My face is red. I can feel it. Everyone in the restaurant is looking at me. Some of them look shocked, whispering behind their hands. I cover my face with my arm, and get to my feet, setting the chair back in its original position.

Arisato is hiding her own face behind a notebook, but she peeks her head out over the top to look at me. Her expression tells she is trying very hard not to smile, a light blush coloring her cheecks. "I'm sorry. Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I'm fine. Don't be stupid." I turn my head away so she can't see my face.

"I really am sorry. I just had a question." I turn around to look at her, hoping my face has returned to its original color. I hated going outside. This was hell.

"What."

She puts her hand on my head, petting me like a child. For a brief second, I wonder if she wants to snap my neck, but that would be dangerous in a public place like this. She would be captured in a heartbeat. No escape "Don't be embarrassed. I just wanted to tell you I was done. Did you have any other plans for the afternoon?"

I swat her hand away. This was no time to be embarrassed. An entire morning wasted, and I hadn't learned a thing. "Do you…mind if I walk you home?"

Her hand pauses over her backpack. She looks at me as if slightly puzzled, but then smiles. "Sure."

I pay for our meal while she waits behind me. Part of me doesn't know what to say to her at all. I was told to gather information but talking online never seemed this difficult. I ball my hands into fists. What was I supposed to say? I couldn't flat out ask her about her persona, or Kirijo. She would never tell me, and even if she did, how could I be sure she wasn't lying?

"Shirato-san." The name jolts me out of my thoughts. It looks like she's been calling me for a while.

"Your change." She grabs it from the hostess and hands it back to me. The way she bites her lip tells me clearly, and without error that she's once again, trying not to smile.

The walk to the dorm is short. I'd scouted it several days ago in case I'd ever need to know. It gives me about 20 minutes to learn whatever I can. "So… are you in university?"

It's her who starts the conversation. She's looking up at me, expectantly. A spy would know I wasn't. Was she trying to make me lower my guard? There are a few people around us. No one is milling. They are clearly headed in some unknown direction. Maybe a grocery store, a date, or on some mission to find their cheating husbands.

"Uhh, no. I sell informational software." Technically not a lie. I sold information on the Revenge Website sometimes.

"Oh. That's interesting. I'm not very good with computers."

"You're good enough to wipe everyone at Hemelin." I mutter in response. She wasn't very good at lying. You had to be at least computer-literate to be able to play a game like that.

"Hemelin isn't very hard. You move, you activate abilities. I only follow the instructions." She shrugs, and my suspicion only grows. This was getting me nowhere. I should've been asking her about the other people at her dorm, or the Kirijo group. Why is she the one whose taking control of the conversation?

"Do you like working?"

I shrug in the same way she does. What an odd question. Was there anyone in the world who liked working? A job is a job. "It's work."

We keep walking for nearly half a block before I realize she's stopped to look out at the shrine. She's not looking at me when she asks her next question. "Do you want to stop at the park?"

The park is a playground for small children right outside the temple. Usually the park is full of children on weekends. Fortunately, the sun would be starting to set soon. Any tiger mom would've squirreled their precious child home already. A white and grey dog is sitting on the steps, his red eyes watching us intensely. His eyes never leave me. For a minute, he bares his fangs but he neither growls, nor makes any move to attack me.

Time seems to move incredibly slow at this point. I don't know how long we sit in awkward silence, but she is the one who breaks it. She grabs a hold of one of my sleeves in a death grip. "I want to thank you, for that night. What you said about being friends made me really happy."

I bark out a sarcastic laugh. This was not at all what I expected. "Why? A pretty girl like you should have lots of friends." Chidori brought back a lot of people. Despite her creepy attitude, many people found her attractive. Different kinds of men followed her home at night thinking she would be easy. We killed them all during the Dark Hour.

She contemplates my words for a moment before tucking her legs under her chin. "Do you have any friends?"

I should be insulted, but I'm not. Something about this girl made it very hard to be mad at her. It didn't seem like she was making fun or me. It didn't even seem like she expected me to answer her. "Yeah. A couple."

"Do you love them? Would you die for them?"

The questions catch me off guard. _Would_ I die for them? I didn't know. Takaya definitely, but what about Chidori? I spent a lot of time with her, arguably more than I did with Takaya if you included the time she spent sleeping on my bed, or eating meals on my floor. I would want her to stay with us, but it wouldn't hurt me if she left. If I knew she was happy, I wouldn't stop her from leaving. Was that love?

"One of them."

"Do you ever wonder if they would die for you?"

I didn't. The thought never even occurred to me, but now that she's planted the question into my head, I can't let it go. Takaya wouldn't die for me. His philosophy was to live life for yourself. Do things for yourself. Don't get attached because at the end of the day, you were by yourself. Every man lives their own life, and dies in their own graves. I couldn't even be bothered to wonder about Chidori. It would give me a headache.

"No."

"Would they?"

 **Probably not.**

"Maybe."

"Then how do you know they're really your friends?"

She is still smiling. Her head resting on her knees, but her face is turned towards me. Her eyes are watching me with wonder, like she's never seen anything at all like me. My immediate thought is that she is trying to ruin us, tear us apart from the inside.

"What about you? Would your friends die for you?"

"I don't have friends. I told you that before."

Her words make sense now, if this is how she thinks. Did anyone have friends then? Was there anyone who would give up their life for their 'friends'?

"No one would die for someone else."

"You think so?" There is a playful undertone in her voice and it bothers me. Almost mocking. As if she knows something that I don't. Was she making me run around in circles? What did she want? What was she trying to do? These questions didn't mean anything. They wouldn't lead anywhere. I would never leave Takaya. It didn't matter if he loved me. It didn't matter if he would die for me. My life was his. I would do anything for him. Nothing else matters. So why? Why did her questions make me so angry? Why did I want to justify myself to her? As if I could validate the devotion I have for Takaya.

"Yeah. People are selfish. They would abandon anyone if it meant saving themselves and getting what they wanted."

"Does that make you lonely?"

 **Yes.**

"No. That's just how people are."

"It makes _me_ lonely."

 **Then why are you still smiling?**

By now, the sun has gotten dark. She stands up, stretching her short arms above her head. When she looks sufficiently ready to leave, she grabs my hand, pulling me to my feet. Her hands are small. They feel warm against my own. "Don't you want someone to love you as much as you love them?"

 **Yes.**

She doesn't wait for an answer. We walk back to the dorm in silence. She lets go when we reach the front door, and I panic. She was leaving, and I didn't want her to. What the hell is this feeling? The fact that I hadn't learned anything at all isn't even a priority anymore. It's just a nagging thought at the back of my mind at this point.

She turns to look at me and her eyes seem to be shining. Rubies. That was the first thing I thought of when I looked at them. They are what I think of now. "I had a lot of fun today. Do you…maybe want to do this again?" Her hands are behind her. I can't see them anymore, but I can imagine them. I want to hold them again. Badly.

There is no doubt in my mind. Every particle in my body compels me to go to her. My conscience gives me the justification. Learn more about her. For Takaya. For him, I will do anything. This is for him. "Yes."

She reaches into her bag and pulls out her phone. "Here's my mail address. You can send me a message whenever you want."

MinaMin92. The handle is really simplistic, kind of like her phone. I copy it down. This is it. The goodbye. What do I do? How did these things work? I rub the back of my neck before I walk away without saying anything. This was getting awkward.

"Bye!" The door is open behind her. Someone could walk out at any moment. They could see me and ruin everything, but she looked so happy just standing there, waving at me. I wave back once before literally running down the street back to the station. I needed to get out of there.

* * *

Akihiko is sitting in the dorm when she walks in, a book in his lap. He is healing well. They'd all be fighting together soon. He would make a great addition to the team. "Hey, Arisato. Who was that walking you home?"

"A new friend." She grins before bounding up to her room, three steps at a time, leaving a confused Akihiko in her wake.

 _*Bing*_

~ _Sorry about leaving like that. I had somewhere to be."_

Minako could feel herself smiling. He was so awkward. A complete weirdo, but she liked that about him. He was different. She sends him a quick reply before heading to the shower. There's a new message when she gets back to her room.

 _~I'm home. Yeah. That sounds good. I'll meet you at 4:30pm next week._

* * *

 **Next Chapter: 10/17/2017**


	5. Rank 3

**A/N: To Elana, sorry about your picture day sign-up? Here's the chapter a day early to make up for it.**

* * *

May 31st 2:44pm Half-Moon Rank 3

I keep glancing at my phone. It started becoming a habit after I'd gotten her mail address. She didn't send me anything at all during her exams, but after they were over, our conversations were almost constant. She sent me pictures throughout the day. A lot of it is nonsense. Useless stuff teenagers like to brag about. But every so often she'd send me a picture that was useful.

She lived with the other people in the photos Takaya had given me. Junpei Iori and Yukari Takeba are the ones she talked to the most, but she occasionally spent time with Akihiko Sanada as well. I am already familiar with him. He busted up our operations often enough looking for Shinjiro Aragaki, a loyal customer to our drug business. The other night, she'd gone to dinner with Sanada and then the two went on a run after school. It left a bad taste in my mouth.

Takaya is home for once. Uncommon, but this meeting had been planned. The pictures of Arisato and her friends are tapped up on one side of the wall. Old newspaper articles cover the space next to it. Every heading shows us what they've been up to. It's easy to spot shadow activity when you know what you're looking for.

Chidori gives her report first, pointing to each photo as she speaks. "Mitsuru Kirijo. Takeharu Kirijo's only daughter. An ice user. She doesn't scale the Tower of Demise. Junpei Iori is the newest. His persona is weak against wind and most Persona attacks. Yukari Takeba is their archer. A junior. Her persona is weak against lightning. The girl is not a physical fighter. When they enter the Tower of Demise, she normally stands at the back to avoid direct conflict. Akihiko Sanada. We've run into him several times. His persona is weak to ice. Physical fighter. He is currently wounded."

Takaya points to his picture of Minako. "What about her?"

"Minako Arisato. She's special. I can't get a good reading on her no matter how many times I check."

Takaya's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

"It keeps changing. Every time I look at her, it looks like her Persona is something different."

Takaya is quiet. It was impossible. Or at least it should've been, but Chidori is never wrong, and I had proof to back up her claims.

"Jin, give me your report on their activities."

I open my laptop, pulling up my chart on their battle patterns. Arisato would be angry if she'd known what I'd done, but Takaya is the priority. She was just a part of the mission. She didn't matter. "They go to the Tower of Demise once or twice a week. I think they're training, but they're also scaling it. Chidori can back up my theory."

The girl nods slowly.

"Most of their activities conjugate during the full moon. That's when there's the most Shadow activity. They're actively seeking out larger Shadows during that time. They've already beaten two, but from what I can tell, it's mostly because of the girl, Minako Arisato."

"What have you found out about her?"

"Nothing important. She lives in Iwatodai on a scholarship for Gekkoukan High. She's staying in the dorm because it houses the members of a school club known as SEES, but it's pretty much a cover for their Shadow activities. She was born on Port Island but her parents and twin brother died in an accident on Moonlight Bridge ten years ago. After that, she lived in an orphanage in Chiba. No more records of her exist after she entered the orphanage up until she moved back here."

"Moonlight Bridge…10 years ago?" Takaya probably thought the same thing I had originally suspected.

"I looked into it. Neither of her parents had anything to do with the Kirijo Group. Her mom was a housewife and her dad was a teacher. Paramedics found her family's bodies in the car, but she was passed out on the street a few meters away next to her brother's body."

Takaya didn't seem ready to let her go, but I'd looked as far into her past as I could. I open up several photos I'd found of the accident. Her parents both died of severe damage to the cranium. Their upper bodies had been mutilated almost beyond recognition. Even with my background, it had been hard to look at. Most of the blood they found on her belonged to her brother. It looked like he didn't die immediately after the accident. She'd dragged him out of the car in the hopes to save him, before he died of blood loss on the bridge. The fact that she didn't turn out to be a psychotic killer after witnessing something like that is probably a miracle. Takaya was not touching her if I could help it.

"And her persona?"

I pull up several videos I have of them fighting in the tower. I'd had Medea record them after a lot of effort on Chidori's part. They showed the respective members of SEES and all their Personas. Several different ones appeared behind Arisato. "Some of her personas show Healings powers like Medea's. One of them could use Death Spells while another used Fire. It's like she has an arsenal of personas inside her."

Takaya sighs, rubbing his face with his hands. He watches the video twice, his eyes glued to the screen. When he's done, he closes the laptop, and turns to me and Chidori, "Keep your eye on all of them, but this girl in particular."

The two of us nod. This meeting was over. Takaya disappears back into his room.

"Jin." Chidori pulls me into my own room, locking the door behind her.

"What are you doing?" She drags me to my bed and pins me to the mattress with her arms. I'm better in combat but in terms of physical strength, Chidori was stronger. "Have you fallen in love with me or something?" I'd only said it, because I know it's impossible. Chidori doesn't love anyone or anything. She never has.

When the two of us were younger, I'd gotten mad at her for eating my dinner so I'd burned her sketchbooks as revenge. I'd felt guilty right after I'd done it, but she didn't cry or wail. She didn't care at all. The girl was heartless. She didn't get attached. Medea was the exception, but the Persona would never leave her side. It existed within her. The shadow of her soul.

"Are you going to see her again?" Chidori is watching me, her eyes narrowed in suspicion. She knew. Of course she knew. Out of the three of us, Chidori was the only one who didn't use the drug. She used her persona to gather information but Medea was more than that. Chidori thought they were friends. Of course she asked Medea to keep an eye on us.

"Yes." Even if she ratted me out, I was going to go.

Her eyes widen, maybe in shock, maybe in wonder. I'll never know. "Are you coming back?"

Chidori is odd, but she understood me better than most people. She didn't need to ask that question. "This place is home." There were things only the three of us could ever comprehend about one another. No one would ever be able to enter this circle and disrupt that. No matter what happened, that would always be true.

"Do you need healing?" I thought about saying no, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

The drugs should've killed us years ago, but we had Chidori. She was our life line. Every so often, she would heal our internal organs. I don't know how she did it. Probably one of Medea's powers, but it was because of her that me and Takaya had lived this long. If she died, then we would too.

It only takes a few moments, but when we we're done, Chidori plops herself onto her side. "Bring me Takoyaki when you come home." She is asleep almost instantly. It was early afternoon and it was summer, but my room is cold. I keep it that way to stop my systems from overheating. I grab a thick blanket and throw it over her before leaving.

* * *

Minako Arisato is waiting for me at the center of Paulownia Mall, in front of the fountain. This place is much further from home than the station but she said she wanted to pick our destination today.

"Hello again." She stands up from the bench, to look at me properly. "You didn't bring your suitcase."

The statement makes me blush, but she probably wouldn't understand why. The thing held my grenades, and my computer. Leaving them both at home was probably a sign that I was beginning to trust her. The enemy. An idiotic move if there ever was one. "Yeah. Didn't need it today."

She nods, grabbing my hand. The warmth immediately feels familiar. Weeks, I'd craved it. The pills always left me feeling cold. It was part of the reason I wore a jacket, even in the summer.

She pulls me into the arcade. The place is loud, full of things to do and people there on dates. It makes me uncomfortable, but so do most things. "What do you want to do?" I watch her expectantly.

"Mmm, Quiz game first. I want to know if I can beat you." I beat her without much problem. I'd thought she was smart, but maybe it was only at certain subjects. She is almost pouting by the time we are done. "What's wrong?"

"I don't like losing."

I can't remember the last time I actually genuinely laughed, but at the moment, a small chuckle escaped my lips. She was cute.

We move onto the Punching Bag next, and her score blows me out of the water. Not unexpected. We go through game after game. I'm faster than her at Mole Whackers. She wins me a figma from the crane machines. I have more rhythm on the music machines though she can name almost every song. Spending time with her is fun. I play a lot of video games, but nothing like this. I almost forgot my mission, and maybe even Takaya. Almost.

"What's next?"

She points to an attraction at the end of the room. The Horror House. "Are you scared ghosts?"

After we had escaped the Kirijo experiments, I'd been scared of everything. I'd wake up scared, not knowing what to do. Not knowing where my next meal came from or where we would go. I'd been scared of living. Everything was unfamiliar. The Kirijo experiments only taught me about pain and the complete, almost constant ability to die. Any one of us could die at any moment. Takaya brought me out of that nightmare. He taught me how to live, to not be afraid. "I'm not scared of anything."

"Me neither." She smiles and drags me into the horror house. It isn't nearly as bad as I expected. The Shadows are much worse. A few people dressed like demons and ghosts jump out at us every so often but the attraction is pretty tame for the most part. I almost hope that the house could've been a little more horrifying. It'd be interesting to see her scared.

Arisato yawns as we exit and I reflexively go to pet her on the head. _Why did I do that?_ I abruptly stop, pulling my hand away. "Tired?"

"Yeah, but there's one last thing I want to do." She drags me into a Print Station, dropping in 200 yen. "Smile!"

The machine takes several sticker sized pictures of us. My glasses are tinted orange so there isn't a glare, but I look bad all the same. No smile. I make a grab for them but she gets there first. "Nuh, uh uh. There's one for each of us. Don't even think about taking them all."

I don't know what she thought I was going to do, but destroying them was the only thing on my mind. She take one of the stacks, putting it in her wallet, and handing me the other one. "C'mon. Let's go home."

I stuff the roll into my pocket. I'd burn them later. "Why'd you pick the arcade?"

"I thought you might enjoy it, since you like video games."

"That's small-minded."

"You didn't like it?" She has a small smile on her face, as if she's playing a prank on someone.

 _I did._

"Arcades are for kids."

"How old are you, Shirato-san?"

She was 16. I knew that. Would I make her uncomfortable? "I'll be 19 in October."

"You're still a kid..." She is walking to the shrine. I was starting to like this spot. I hated children, but they are never here when we are. That made them okay.

"I stopped being a kid a long time ago."

Her smile hasn't disappeared, but there is some sadness on her face now too. I was beginning to see them. There is always a flurry of emotions behind her fake smiles if I looked hard enough. "Same here."

"What happened?" I was asking the real questions now. The mission. This was for the mission. I had to remember that. _Focus_.

"You first." It occurs to me that I should probably lie. There was no reason to tell the truth. In fact, it would probably be a bad idea to reveal too much of myself to this girl. If she really was working for Kirijo, maybe she still hadn't verified my identity yet. If I told her the truth, she would know, and the whole thing would fall apart. Everything told me to lie, but why? Why did I want to tell her the truth?

"My family was really poor. My mother sold me to pay for my father's alcohol addiction. The people that bought me weren't the nicest bastards. It didn't end well for anyone."

She doesn't ask me to continue, or elaborate. In a way, it's kind of nice. Had it been anyone else, they might have been horrified, but they'd also be eager to hear more. People loved soaking in the misery of others. As long as it didn't hurt them, the drama was fun, wasn't it? People getting hit by cars. Beaten. Raped. We love hearing about it until the horrors become our own. Scum.

All of a sudden, I can feel her arms wrap around my neck. Her chin is resting uncomfortably on my shoulder. I don't hug her back. I can't feel my arms. They are dangling like lead at my side. Chidori hugged me sometimes. She had nightmares about our days in the Kirijo group even though she never remembered them. She would cling to me in her sleep as if I could shield her from the pain, but it wasn't like what I felt now.

The way this girl, Minako Arisato, hugged me, wasn't anything like Chidori's death grip. This girl's hug is soft, like she is protecting something that could break at any moment. It almost felt like she was trying to shield me from some unseen enemy. Me? Had anyone ever tried to do that for me?

"Everyone I've ever loved is gone." She doesn't say anything else, and I don't press her. Her parents and her brother are dead. I know that. Guilt washes over me. I haven't felt this emotion since the day I'd burned Chidori's paintings. This emotion is worse now. I've taken something very precious to this girl and violated it. I don't deserve her kindness. I don't deserve her at al.

"I'm sorry."

She lets go so she can look me in the eyes. A small smile plays at her lips, sad and fragile. "It's okay. I'm over it."

 _You're lying._

I don't say that. I don't have the right. Her brother. Her family. All of her tragedy. I took this knowledge without her consent. I gave it to someone who wouldn't care. Someone who was trying to destroy her. If she knew the truth, could she ever forgive me?

 _It doesn't matter. It's part of the mission. Remember._

She unwraps me from the hug, and we walk the short distance back to the dorm holding hands. When she lets go at the door, the familiar feeling of loss comes back.

"Thank you for tonight, Shirato-san. We should do this again." She bows, and I break out of my dream. She is the target. This is the mission. It didn't matter how much pain I would cause her. It wouldn't matter if she never forgave me. Once Takaya wanted to destroy someone, we did it. No exceptions. Every meeting would end with this simple truth: We are enemies.

"Yeah. We should. Send me a message when you want." I walk a few feet before I turn around. She is watching me from her doorway, but the door is open behind her. Warm light spills out, inviting and threatening all at the same time. That world would never welcome me. I lived in this darkness while she lived in the light. It could never be crossed.

I get home about 35 minutes before midnight. Takaya is already gone, but Chidori is still asleep on my bed. I wake her up with my foot, dropping a bag of Takoyaki on the floor in front of her.

My phone pings to let me know Arisato has sent me another message. It's one of pictures the Print Station took. I'm groaning, turned away from her. Her arm is hooked with mine to keep me in place. She's looking directly at me. A small, happy smile on her face.

Chidori blinks slowly before sitting up, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. She's staring at me intently, as if she doesn't recognize me. "Did you have a good time?"

"No. What are you talking about?"

"You're smiling. I've never seen you look like that before."

* * *

 **Next Chapter: 10.21**


	6. Rank 4

**A/N: To all the lovely people reading. Thank you for the support. There aren't many of you, but know that you are the best, and this subpar writer loves you.**

* * *

June 6th 8:47PM Waxing Gibbous

She was causing trouble. A week after we'd gone to the arcade, she appeared in my backyard, almost literally. Iori, Takeba, and Arisato stormed in on the gangs who occupied the alley underneath our apartment, asking questions about one of their classmates. I watched them from the kitchen window with Chidori next to me.

"Shouldn't you help her?"

My body wants to move, but logic dictates I should stay. I couldn't help her. Not right then. It would ruin everything. For one thing, it would reveal where I lived. For another, Shinjiro Arigaki would be here any minute, and he might say something necessary should we all run into each other. "She'll be okay. She's a tough girl."

Chidori stares at me for another minute, blinking twice. It's her way of shrugging before turning her eyes back to the scene. Takeba is running her mouth, antagonizing the thugs that surrounded them. The girl sounded brave, but she is standing behind Arisato and Iori. Clearly, she was all bark and no bite. Minako was right. She didn't have friends. Not really.

One of the guys knee Iori, the only male in the group. Minako grabs his shoulder to stop her comrade from falling, but the man is down for the count. She wouldn't be able to take down all of her attackers while protecting the two losers behind her. It was impossible, no matter how strong she was.

 _Help her!_

 _Don't do it! She's not important._

 _She's going to get hurt._

 _Remember the plan!_

Thoughts and scenarios run through my mind. The choice is agonizing. Luckily, I am saved from making one when the unlikely hero arrives in an ugly overcoat. Aragraki appears right one time, head-butting one of the thugs in the face. Blood spurts from the guy's nose. It lands on his friends as he falls to the ground. The other thugs pull him up, but they are clearly afraid. Aragaki was trying to send a message and it was working. The party disbands soon afterward. Aragaki stays behind to talk to the trio, but they're speaking too quietly for me to hear.

"Did you catch anything they said?"

"Medea…Medea is telling me one of their friends is missing. A girl named Fuuka."

"Was she on the list of persona users?"

Chidori shakes her head. Useless then. Takaya wouldn't care to know about this. "C'mon, let's get back to work."

After the trio leaves, Aragaki would be coming up here to get his month's supply of drugs. Takaya left the stash in a cupboard in the kitchen. I'd give Aragaki a few extra pills this time. He played a good hero.

* * *

June 8th Dark Hour Full Moon

It's the first full moon since our observations first started. Takaya is working on an assassination but Chidori and I are tasked with keeping watch on the Persona Users. The nights just started so we haven't learned much. The classmate that they are looking for had been lured into the Tower of Demise. This was a rescue mission.

"Have they regained connection?"

Medea could use the connections Personas made with one another. See what they saw, sometimes even steal their capabilities. The girl had so many powers, it put me and Takaya to shame. Then again, she'd been using her Persona nearly her whole life.

"No."

We'd lost the ability to track their movements when the Dark Hour started. That meant that they had lost contact too. It looked like Kirijo and Takeba were waiting at the bottom of the Tower of Demise while Arisato and the boys are lost somewhere in the upper levels.

" Can you hone in on any of them?"

Chidori shakes her head and I groan in frustration. This entire mission had been pointless. I hate waiting, but I hate being useless even more. Moros is apt for combat but has no role in reconnaissance. What was happening in there? I say nothing else, simply watching my partner quietly. Something needed to happen soon or I would blow up a building for kicks.

"Jin."

"What?"

"They've found her. The girl. Fuuka. Her persona is amazing. She gives me the clearest picture. Minako Arisato is fine, but Kirijo and Takeba are under attack in the lobby."

"What do you mean they're under attack?!"

"Shadows. Giant ones. They're...shifting. Their abilities keep changing. It's almost as strong as the Arisato girl. "

"Are they winning?"

"Yes. They are winning. It's...amazing. They're stronger than us...So...Much..." Everything was going well until then. Too well. Chidori screams. Medea has her hands wrapped around the girl's throat, effectively shutting her up. My friend had lost control.

"Stop! Chidori stop!" I wrap one arm around her forehead to hold her in place before using a razor blade to cut a deep line along her wrists. The blood is immediate. It comes in rivers, sliding over her wrists and onto her white dress. Chidori snaps out of the trance, and Medea disappears into the depths of her mind. My friend is breathing hard but there are no other signs of the episode. The situation was under control. It would be okay. The wound would heal in a few minutes. It always did.

"Jin. We need to leave. Now. We need to tell Takaya everything."

* * *

June 13th 11:52PM Waning Gibbous

Minako's eyes drift to her phone. She'd left him several messages but she hadn't heard from him since the full moon. Her subconscious told her this wasn't a coincidence. He knew something. She sighs, putting her pencil down not to her unfinished homework. There was no point working right now. She was too distracted.

She opens her computer, signing onto Hemlin. She hadn't touch the game in over a month. After she'd met ShiroiTobira in real life, she hadn't seen the point. He isn't on, unfortunately, but she plays a few games in arena to occupy her time. The match ends in her favor, and she goes into another one, challenging everyone in sight. Her mind drifts while she plays.

ShiroiTobira. His messages are floating like puzzle pieces in her mind. He was such a strange man. The things he did and said, were almost contradictory to one another: pushing and pulling her away all at once. Even this bout of silence was odd. Nothing preceded it. They didn't have any argument. He didn't say he would be busy. He just stopped answering one night, and that was it. The most obvious solution was that he was connected to the Dark Hour in some manner. Perhaps he's woken up during the Dark Hour, and had been eaten by shadows. She knew nothing about him. Not his address or where he worked. She couldn't look for him to confirm that theory though she doubted its plausibility.

There was also a chance he was an enemy. Perhaps he'd been spying on her and the lack of contact was because his superior ordered him to stop, but what where the chances of that? She'd been watching too many movies.

The girl finishes her match before checking her friend list one more time. He's not online, and Hemlin holds no value to her without him on it.

Minako finds a blank spot on the wall, trying to fit the pieces together in her mind. She'd met a stranger on the internet. She had known close to nothing about him before their meeting. The first attempt at contact had been a failure. He had been nearby, watching her, but failed to show. That was already suspicious, but there were several logical, normal reasons why he didn't come out to meet her. The fact that she'd beat up two grown men in front of him was more than enough reason not to meet her. He responded well to her flirtations, but there always seemed to be hesitation to make any real progress. Another suspicious sign. He ceased contact on the night of the full moon before a giant shadow fight. The pieces were slowly falling into place, and the picture it was painting of him was ugly.

She blinks again to clear away the mental image she'd drawn. This was why she didn't have friends. She didn't trust anyone. Everyone had an ulterior motive. Minako found those too. It didn't take her long. Everyone in the dorm held their secrets close to their hearts. Mitsuru Kirijo wasn't a bad person, but she was willing to put alltheir lives on the line for her own selfish reasons. Junpei didn't care for anyone here. He was using SEEs as a means of avoiding his alcoholic father. Akihiko is like her. He lives in the past. He'd failed to save his little sister when they were younger. He fights now to appease that misplaced sense of guilt. Miki, her name was.

Yukari was a mystery for now, but Minako was sure that her reasons for fighting would come up in conversation at some point. Selfish reasons. No one in this dorm lived for others. They would cry. Mourn. Maybe some of them would even miss her, but their lives were not intertwined. The bonds here are flimsy. They'll break at the slightest touch.

Once they graduated or defeated all of the shadows, SEEs would be finished. Their little group would disappear. They would leave for their own path, and she would be alone again. They weren't friends. Comrades. Partners, maybe. But they weren't friends.

Minako shakes her head. It was happening again. Her emotions are getting to her. She would try not to think of her situation too often, but it rarely worked. Everyone had an ulterior motive, some of them were just easier to see than others. The hardest one to figure out was probably the man named Shirato. He wasn't part of SEEs. He wasn't someone from school. He was just someone she had met by accident. That was the story anyway.

The stickers that they'd made at the arcade are now scattered inside various notebooks. Minako looks at them fondly, rubbing her thumb over her favorite one. He is looking at her, his orange-tinted glasses hiding his eyes. There is a blush on his cheeks. The two of them hadn't been forced together. A coincidence. Was he like her? A man without a future?

There was no way he was an enemy. Their encounter had been a coincidence. After all, the first time they'd met was because he offered to help her study. But the real root was Hemelin, a game that she didn't even buy; Minako would need to thank Junpei for the gift when she got the chance.

Minako walks as quietly as possible to the bathroom to wash her face. This train of thought was getting her nowhere. No matter how many times she told herself that it was a coincidence, the questions nagged at her. The man didn't want to be her friend but every time she saw him, it looked like he was forcing himself to make conversation. What was his motive? Why was he trying to befriend her while simultaneously keeping her at arm's length? What was his endgame?

* * *

June 21st 4:52 PM Waning Crescent

Takaya gathers us in the kitchen. He is examining my work. I'd made three Evokers just like the ones SEEs carried. It had taken me a week to analyze the hard data that I'd stolen and another week to make them.

"Do they work?"

"Yeah. Chidori tested them the other day since she's the only one whose off the pills. Works like a charm."

"And our Personas?"

"As strong as before, but you know the risks."

He nods. We all knew the risks. We weren't real persona-users. Not like the people we'd seen. Not taking the pills could kill us, but if we were all together, we could stop it from happening. At least we could postpone it a little. We would keep each other alive, like we've always done.

"The next full moon is July 7th. They're sure to have another fight. I'll join the two of you for the observation. For now, keep your eye on them. Don't engage."

At that, he leaves me and Chidori alone. I immediately pull out my phone. I hadn't checked any of my mail while I'd been working but Minako had sent me three messages. The first was a snippet of her day from weeks before, the other two are questions asking me when I have free time.

Chidori doesn't hesitate to pull me into my room again, locking the door behind her. "You shouldn't go."

I turn my head to face her, putting my response on hold. "Why not? You heard Takaya. We're supposed to be watching them."

"He won't be happy, knowing what you're doing."

"It's for the mission. He'll understand."

"Really?" She stares at me from my bed. Her arms are folded defiantly. "Jin, do you know what you're doing?"

I did. Of course, I did. She was, _is_ the enemy, but she was clearly special. If I could understand why, then maybe we could beat them. As of now, it would be tough. There were more of them, and they could control their personas better. I tell her as much.

"Everything I do is for Takaya."

She lets go of my arm and nods. Her eyes tell me she doesn't believe me, but she'll play along for now. I give Minako a call as I run out the door.

* * *

Rank 4

"Hello?" Minako doesn't bother to look at the caller ID. Her hands are already busy helping Fuuka make sweets.

"It's me." There is a pause, "Jin. Shirato."

As if she could forget. Thoughts of him are frequent. "Ah, Shirato-san. It's been so long. How are you?"

"Yeah. It has. Do you want to meet up? The docks behind Port Island Station. 6 O'clock?"

Minako looks at the clock hanging above her head. That gave her roughly a half hour. She could make it if she ran. "Sure. I'll see you there."

She throws off her apron, screaming an apology to the blue-haired girl as she takes off. No time to change. Luckily, she generally wore outdoor clothes around the dorm. It wasn't safe wearing pajamas with the guys around.

The docks are situated behind Iwatodai Station. There are several ways to get there, but the most direct is going through a rough alleyway. She'd only been there once to get information when Fuuka had been missing. Now, she runs through it again, ignoring the odd looks the occupants give her. When the walls of surrounding buildings open up, all she can see is water. The line of abandoned warehouses to her right don't even give her pause.

The man she is looking for stands at the end of the pier when she arrives, out of breath. He looks surprised to see her. "Are you okay?"

She is gasping, pushing out her words between breaths. "Yeah...Just...fine...Had...to run..." When she can properly breathe again, she pulls a clear plastic baggie filled with a few pieces of chocolate out of the purse she has slung over one shoulder. "These are for you."

His eyes seem to grow even wider under his glasses, and she has a sudden interest in knowing how he looks without them. The urge to grab them is there, but she hold backs. That move would be too brash right now. Maybe next time.

"Why...Why would you get me chocolate?"

"I made them in the cooking club with a friend." The word sounds foreign on her lips, but the lie slips out easily enough. Friends. Everyone used it so loosely.

He doesn't take them. His expression is a mixture of what looks like suspicion and curiosity. The face intrigues her. Why is he suspicious? What does he want to know? Why can't he just ask? These thoughts were frequent, but she never voiced them. He isn't aware that his face always gives him away. "You...don't like chocolate?"

He seems to blush, turning his face away from her. "I'm, uh...allergic, to chocolate."

"Oh..." Minako tries not to let the disappointment show on her face before putting the chocolate back in her bag. "I'll make you something else next time. Is there anything you like to eat?"

He doesn't answer her, sitting down on the edge of the dock. Shirato pats the seat next to him, motioning for her to sit down. "Anything is fine."

She's moves as close to him as possible, so their legs can touch during the movement. This was deceptive, she knew that. Using the fact that she was a woman to charm him into talking about himself was morally wrong, but she feels no guilt. People are easy to manipulate. It's not hard to elicit certain reactions when you wanted something. "So where have you been these past few weeks?"

He stares at her for a few minutes, as if he is deciding how to best answer her. He did this often. Shirato didn't know how to stall for time. If he didn't know what to say, then he said nothing. He kept a lot from her, that was obvious. But he probably didn't know how transparent he was. The man was a horrible spy.

"Working. My. Friend. Needed me to do something for him." Minako couldn't help but wonder if this is the same friend that he loved and would die for. Was this friend trying to use Shirato in some way? That would explain his strange behavior. "Did you miss me or something?"

"Yes." She doesn't hesitate in her response and his eyes grow wide, most likely in shock. She can't help but smile. He liked to keep his secrets but the boy didn't really know how to fish for answers. Or communicate properly. She'd made the deduction weeks ago that he probably didn't have much in the way of social interaction. She knew how to act to keep his attention, to make him surprised. To make him want to come back. "I thought maybe you didn't want to talk to me anymore."

There is a brief look of pain on his face, but it disappears as quickly as it had come. What was that?

"I like talking to you."

"Me too." She reaches for his hand. He flinches but lets her take it. He's done that before too. Did he know? Did he realize how obvious he was? None of his reactions made sense in a logical way, but the picture in her mind was still coming together. Minako wanted nothing more than to rip open his head and steal all his secrets.

They sit in silence watching the sun set, each lost in thoughts of the other. He is the one who breaks the peace.

"I hate people, you know."

"What?" Where did that come from?

"People are greedy and selfish. They'll all lie to you to get what they want. You probably shouldn't trust them."

Minako didn't trust people. She didn't trust him at all, but those words put a chink in that disbelief. Why would he say that to her? She knew she shouldn't trust people. Him especially, so what was the point of him telling her that? What was he trying to do? "Does that include you?" Her eyes watch his face, searching for a reason. She was generally pretty good at reading people, but there are a few exceptions. He is one of them. Guilt and sorrow are etched into his features. He seemed to age into someone much older under her scrutiny.

"Yes."

Minako decides to stand up, pulling him with her. They start walking home in silence, but she is completely lost in her thoughts. Was this another ploy or had he been honest? Did he mean it this time? What was he trying to tell her?

Shirato stops in front of a dark apartment building behind Port Island Station, his face emptied of all the emotion it held earlier. "It's time for me to go."

Minako watches him for another minute. Her eyes take in all of his features. He's pale, like someone who rarely left the house. His blue hair is cut strangely, like someone who doesn't know what looks good. He has a dorky smile, and ugly glasses that cover pretty eyes. He looks cute when he blushes. She could list a million things about him that contradicted; didn't make any sense. There are hundreds of truths she wants to tell him; questions she wants to ask him. But she could only find one sentence that mattered. One lie. Three words: "I trust you."

He takes a step back, his eyes searching her face for a motive, or a deception, she isn't sure which. He would find neither. He wasn't a good liar, but she was.

"You shouldn't."

Who do you trust when everyone has secrets to hide? Everyone lives a separate life. To be devoid of secrets means to be complete with someone else. She did not trust Jin Shirato. There were too many questions in her mind. Too many coincidences and suspicions. No. She didn't trust him at all, but she wanted to. Oh how badly, she wanted to. If only to make the mad questions go away. "I know."

A thousand emotions seem to move through his face. The man really did wear his heart on his sleeve, no matter how sneaky he thought he was. "You..." He stopps abruptly, rubbing the bridge of his nose under his glasses. He sighs before looking her directly in the face, a smile forming on his lips. Genuine and sweet, it once again transforms him into someone different. Here was another part of him, she wanted to understand. "Fries. I like potato fries."

* * *

 **Next Chapter: 10/24 Rank 5**


	7. Rank 5

**A/N: This story has gotten so much more attention than I initially expected. It warms my heart to see so many people who love Jin. I always thought he was really underrated. But here's the chapter early because I messed up the order of the chapters last weekend.**

* * *

July 4th 9:43AM Waxing Gibbous Rank 5

The weeks leading up to the full moon are busy. News of the Revenge site exploded overnight and we'd received more requests than ever before. The three of us split up more often, taking out as many requests as we can afford. Between work and sleeping the only other thing I do is research. I'd hacked into the cameras at the dorms long ago, but there isn't much to watch.

Minako sends me messages less often. She spends afternoons and weekends with the others in the dorm and club mates but she is spending more time in the Tower of Demise. They're practicing almost daily for the Full-Moon battle according to Chidori.

Chidori is watching me almost constantly. I can't see any sign of Medea but I can feel her eyes on me day and night. She is watching me right now, in between her sketching.

 _*Bing*_

I look at my phone before glancing quickly at the girl behind me. She doesn't move from her spot.

 _~"Do you want to meet up at the docks again?"_

"Are you going to go?" Chidori's soft voice makes me jolt and I throw my phone at her out of reflex; the little device hits her in the chest. "...Ow."

"Sorry." I pick it up, sending Minako a quick reply. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Are you going to go?"

"Yeah."

"The full moon operation is in a few days. Are you sure it's a good idea?"

"It'll be fine."

Chidori continues to watch me intensely. Her eyes are narrowed in suspicion. She wouldn't rat me out to Takaya. I am sure of that by now, but it is entirely impossible to know what she is really thinking. "Don't fall in love with her."

I snort derisively. She couldn't be serious. That wouldn't actually happen. "Don't be stupid."

She says nothing in reply, resuming the strange drawings in her sketchbook.

* * *

Chidori was an idiot. I couldn't possibly fall in love with Minako Arisato. She was and still is the enemy. She is Takaya's target, and the main reason SEEs was succeeding. Not to mention she had plenty of other men running around her.

I took peeks into her life almost daily, more things she would probably hate me for if she knew. Iori, and her precious Sanada are just the beginning. She had some french kid hanging around her like a sore thumb at school, not to mention some tall foreigner that even Chidori couldn't read.

"He isn't human." That was what she'd said, but what the hell did that mean? Was he an alien? A shadow? Some weird figment of our collective imagination? Arisato had too many weirdos hanging around. How could I fall in love with someone like that?

"Shirato-san!" The sound of my name causes me to move back in alarm, nearly tipping off the docks and into the water. Minako's hand clenches around my jacket, pulling me back with all her might. I stumble, tripping over her legs and falling on top of her.

She is a small girl. I scrap one of my knees and both my hands in an attempt not to hurt her. My glasses fall off, disappearing into the clustered colors of the world. "Are you okay?"

"Y...Yes. Are you okay?" Her face is flushed, the tinge almost matching her eyes.

"I'm fine." She is close. Even without my glasses I can see her clearly.

"Shi...ra...to...san?" Her face looks confused, like she doesn't know what to say or do. I've never seen her so flustered. She is beautiful.

"Jin. Just call me Jin."

"Jin...Mina then, for me."

"Mina..." I couldn't possibly fall in love with her. I wouldn't let it happen.

Her eyes snap back to attention, like saying her name had destroyed the moment. She abruptly sits up, forcing me out of the way and into a sitting position on the dock. "I made you potato fries at the cooking club. Would you like to try them?"

She had made them just because I said I liked it? Had she been doing all this to impress me? For what? Why? What was her endgame? She couldn't possibly have feelings for me."Are you serious?"

"Of course!" Her face is full of excitement as she unwraps a small batch of fries from a piece of tin foil. The expression doesn't last long. "Oh, they got crushed when we fell."

I grab one for a taste, and she immediately starts yelling for me to stop. "No! Don't eat them."

"...They taste fine." They were better than fine. Delicious even, but she wouldn't hear that from me.

She smiles, her expression one of pity. "You don't need to lie to make me feel better. I bet it tastes awful after all that tousling in my bag."

"Don't be stupid. Food doesn't change just because it gets beaten around a bit. The consistency maybe, but not the taste." For such a smart girl, she could be immensely idiotic sometimes.

"Really?" She grabs one for herself before holding another out to me. The fry hangs limply, a few inches from my mouth.

I quirk an eyebrow in question, "What are you doing?"

"Eat." I reach out to grab it but she moves it out of my way. When she moves it back, I try to get it a second time, but again, she moves it out of reach. Her eyes twinkle with mischief."Use your mouth."

"Are you stupid?"

She rolls her eyes, a playful expression on her face. "Just do it."

I move my head down so I can eat it from her hands, my lips touching the tips of her fingers. I feel a blush creeping up my neck. This was embarrassing. Awkward even. Who still did stuff like this? We weren't children. "There, happy?" I growl.

"Yes. Very." She is still smiling, but I can see the same blush on her face. So it was equally embarrassing for her but she'd done it anyway. What an idiot.

* * *

 _I want to kiss him._

That was the only thing she could think of when she felt his lips brush her fingers. He'd been watching her as he did it, his glasses hidden in her bag. He'd dropped them when they fell, and she quickly hid them when he wasn't looking. He looked better with them, but he was attractive without them too. Maybe less sophisticated and harsh, like an assistant instead of the teacher.

When had the game changed? She'd originally acted a bit cutesy and girly in an attempt to get him to open up, maybe finally solve the puzzle in her mind. When had her farce become her desire? Jin was being a bit mean today, but she didn't really mind. He felt closer than before. Like their interactions in the past had been a show, and the curtain and closed off the audience.

Every so often he'd say she was stupid, but maybe she was. She was sitting on this dock, playing cat and mouse with a man who she barely knew and who barely knew anything about her. She was losing too. The thought almost made her want to laugh at the absurdity of it. How could they ever be together when she kept so many secrets from him? When he was so clearly lying to her?

"Jin?" He had been digging on the ground for his glasses, patting down his pockets.

"What?" She hands them to him without a smile. The joke had passed. It was time to get serious, and he may not like what she had to say.

"Do you...do you have someone you like?"

"I...what?! No! Well, I guess. Maybe. What do you mean like?" He splutters, backing away a few steps. That hurt. The pain in her chest surprised her. It was new, exhilarating even. She could feel the adrenaline pumping in her veins, almost as quickly as when she fought in Tartarus. The adrenaline that told her she was still alive, far away from everyone who loved her.

"Do you have someone you want to be with, for the rest of your life?" She says it differently, her eyes completely serious. There could be no hesitation. If she didn't catch him off guard, he might close up and she would never get an answer. She would ask him, honestly and seriously because this was what she wanted. She would do it, because **he** was what she wanted.

He seemed to look at her seriously as well. Perhaps because he knew what she was trying to ask or say, but she could also see it in his eyes. She wouldn't like whatever it was he was about to tell her.

"Yes." That one word shattered the illusion she'd built in her mind. They couldn't play pretend forever. Whatever else they'd tried to hide, this was the truth.

Minako turns back to look at the sunset. The second time they had done so together. Jin doesn't say anything else either. Perhaps there was nothing else for either of them to say. Their feelings had been made clear. What else was there? What had she been thinking the first time they sat together? She'd thought that she was happy. That she enjoyed spending time with him.

As the sky turns from orange to red, and then to a pretty shade of purple, the pair remains quiet, each contemplating the next steps of this relationship. Jin stands up to go, and he extends a hand for her to take. They walk silently until they reach the dark apartment building where Jin lives. The sun has just completely set, the sky dark except for the low illumination of stars. Neither of them say a word. His eyes shift to look at the apartment before they return to her face. He is anxious, either afraid of someone seeing them or itching to go. She can't tell which. If he left, she would never see him again. The thought drags the words from her chest.

"Don't leave me." This happened every time. Jin always looked like he was trying to get closer to her while trying to stay as far away as possible. It pushed her to her emotional limit. Why couldn't he make his motive clear like the others? At least with the others she knew there would be no future for her. She knew what they wanted out of her, but Jin was always walking on her lines. If she said the right things, then he would stay. But for how long? When was he going to abandon her like the others?

"What are you saying?" His eyes are pained. He clearly didn't want to hurt her, but this wasn't what he wanted. What did he want? Why couldn't he just tell her?

"I don't want you to leave me." She says it again, her voice a little clearer. A little stronger.

"Stop it. I... I have someone else. Someone more important to me. When you asked me if I would die for him, I meant it. I would. **He** is the most important person to me." There it was. The truth at last, and it surprised her. She hadn't expected it would be a man, but did it matter? Not really. At least now he was being honest. Throwing his secrets out in the open.

With every word, they said, the truth was becoming clearer. He had someone else so why did he come so close to her? Why did he accept all her attempts to get close to him? There was still so much to learn. "That's okay. It doesn't change anything."

This shocks him into silence. Whatever he was about to say, is lost to the confusion. "What...What do you mean that's okay? That should change everything! Are you crazy?"

"You would die for him, but would he do the same for you?" Jin doesn't answer her. That is all the confirmation she needs. "You know he wouldn't. So you're expendable. You're just there for him to use you. A tool. Is that what you want?"

He doesn't answer her. The pain on his face lets her know she can keep going, that everything she says is the truth.

She smiles, and it's sympathetic instead of cruel. This was the only way she knew how to live. To smile to hide all the darkest and most wicked parts of herself. Her words are hurting him, and she knows it. "Jin, I know we've been lying to one another. You don't need to believe me right now, but I will wait for you. I hope that someday, you will pick me over him, and when that day comes, I hope we can be honest with each other."

She turns and walks away. There would be no tears today. The pain she was feeling at that moment wasn't anything substantial. It barely registered in her mind. None of it could compare to losing her parents. To losing Minato. It didn't compare with losing the ones you loved. To losing a future that been promised to you. Minako had said what she wanted, and she'd put in her best effort. That was all anyone could ask for.

* * *

I burst into the apartment. Chidori is sitting in her room, chiseling at a half finished block of stone. She doesn't turn to look at me when I burst through the door. "How did you know?"

"I didn't."

"Don't lie to me!" I kick over an unfinished painting she'd placed against the wall. I'd ruined the fabric and all her hard work. Had it been Medea? Did she use a Persona to spy on the girl? She'd clearly been listening in to our conversation downstairs.

"I'm not." She doesn't even stop working. Her hands hammering softly.

I crumple against her wall, sinking to a squat. What did Mina mean? Did she want to be with me? Did she like me? Or did she mean in that moment? What the hell was going on? "What do I do?"

Chidori shrugs, her expression nonchalant. Her eyelids are drooping, sleepy. "Whatever you want to do."

"What the hell does that mean?"

She sighs, finally putting her tools on a small table next to her. "You're not Takaya. You live for him, but he lives for himself. You were never able to learn the lessons he tried to teach you."

"I..." I wanted to tell her it wasn't true, but what was the point of that? I'd be lying to one of the few people in the world I thought of as a friend. "What am I supposed to do...?" I repeated.

"Do whatever you want." She grabs me by the shoulders, forcing me to look into her eyes. "If you want her, take her. Leave. Do whatever it is you want to do. If you want Takaya, then stay. Follow him forever like his pet. "

I stare at her in wonder. She wasn't like me, nor was she really like Takaya. She was someone else entirely, and she had her own path in life. "If you found something you wanted, would you leave us?"

She watches me with detachment, this girl who had been with me almost my whole life. "In a heartbeat."

* * *

 **A/N: Again I apologize about the previous mix-up. The next chapter is titled Lovers. 10/27**


	8. Lovers

**A/N: Welcome back Riva. It's perfectly fine. I'm just happy you're still here. I love all reviewers but you were the first so here's a gift for your return. An early chapter. Rated M for sexual connotations. Reader discretion is advised.**

* * *

July 7th Dark Hour Full Moon

"King Frost!" Minako summons her 4th persona of the night and deals the final blow to the Giant Shadow in front of her. It had been a tough fight, but her team was growing stronger. This battle didn't drain her nearly as much as the others did.

Mitsuru and Akihiko had looked visibly uncomfortable all night, for obvious reasons. They were inside a love hotel on Shirakawa Blvd, the site of the mission tonight. The coffins indicating the different people before the Dark Hour struck had left little to the imagination. Minako was sure that in one of the rooms they'd passed, there were three coffins on one bed. She could only wonder about the deviancy that had been going down in that room.

"Well done, everyone. I'll meet you outside." Fuuka's disembodied voice sounds in her ear. This was her first real full moon mission after rescuing their new companion from the tower, but she was already proving her worth. She could identify weaknesses and even the locations of Shadows almost instantly. Minako headed for the door, trying her best to ignore the provocative decorations on the bed and walls. Maybe she'd come back here someday with someone. Life took her down some odd turns after all.

Minako is reaching for the exit when she hears Fuuka's voice again in her ear. "Wait, I still sense a Shadow in the room." Everyone froze, their eyes searching their surroundings. The room was empty. Where was it hiding then?

"Everyone split up, search every corner." Minako ordered, her voice laced with authority. It was still a little strange since she was the youngest, but the others never hesitated to obey her every command. She is their leader without any discontent. They had all put their lives in her hands without the slightest uncertainty.

Junpei goes to the bathroom. Mitsuru the closet. Akihiko is searching behind the furniture. Minako walks to the large mirror on the right side of the room herself. It is in a hexagonal shape, much taller and wider than she could ever be, with golden hearts decorating the corners. The more she stares at the glass surface, the more discontent she feels.

Something was wrong, but what? What?

"Arisato, you find anything?" Akihiko puts his hand on her shoulder, and in that instant she realizes the origin of her paranoia. Their reflections don't exist in the glass at all.

* * *

Light. Bright white light. It surrounds everything, bathing her surroundings in the glow of the heavens.

The next thing Minako sees is a purple room, a bit like what she'd been in earlier. The bed is equally as decorative but the room is smaller. Less extravagant. She can hear whispering in the back of her mind, a voice that isn't hers. Who did it belong to?

 _"You're all I have."_

The voice is familiar. Someone she knows? Or is it the voice of an automation? Preying on her delusions. No. It is familiar. She is sure of it. Who?

She can feel hands wrap around her school blouse, her ribbon. The silk slips from the holes keeping her jacket together, landing softly at her feet. She's not wearing her shoes and one of her socks are missing. Where had they gone? Who had undressed her? Minako can't seem to find her voice. What were the words to make the hands on her body stop moving? Had she forgotten how to speak completely?

" _Let me take care of you."_

Her jacket falls to the floor with a soft thump, and her skirt soon follows. She can feel her shirt loosen as the buttons came undone. One, by one. Sticky hands run over her bare chest. She hates the feeling. That stickiness of sweat. The sweat of her brother in his fear as he bled to death in her arms. Bile rises in her throat. She hated this. "Stop..." Her picture was getting clearer. The world was focusing. The hands were connected to arms, to a body. She turns around to look at the man who is holding her.

 _"Let me make love to you."_

His lips run across her shoulders, her throat. Light touches, like a flame across her skin. She can feel his kisses trail across the top of her bosom, going dangerously close to her breasts. His pale eyes are glazed over as he tries to seduce her. Wrong. Wrong. All of it is wrong. Others didn't touch her. Didn't kiss her. She is always the one who makes the moves. The manipulator. The one who drew others in.

"Let go." Minako doesn't move her hands. There is no strength in her body, but her voice is cold, completely devoid of any of the passion that he holds. The man in front of her resembles him, yet is nothing like him. His eyes contain nothing and he is naked, but he is her senpai. Akihiko Sanada. "Sanada-senpai. _Stop_."

His lips freeze on her collarbone, but the smile is unwavering. There is so much warmth and love on his face that she is momentarily stunned. How can someone look so in love when his eyes are so lifeless? His fingers cup her chin so she needs to look into his lifeless, soulless eyes. She fights the urge to bite the hand that's holding her.

He leans in so that he's whispering into her hair, her ear, and then her shoulder. "Why don't you take a shower? Maybe then you'll feel more comfortable." Akihiko grabs her waist with his other hand, pulling her to kiss him fully on the lips. She doesn't feel the assault, only his subsequent push for her to take a shower.

Minako walks out of the room with light steps she doesn't remember. Her next scene is turning the water on full blast to the coldest temperature. The icy feeling numbs her skin but it clears her mind. She recites the facts as she remembers them. They are on Shirakawa Blvd. Inside Hotel Champs de Fleurs. It is the Full Moon Operation. They have already beaten the giant shadow. Except Fuuka said there was another one. They were looking for this other shadow when something blinded her. Took her to this hotel room. Where Akihiko had undressed her. Where he had kissed her.

 _Jin._

His face appears in her mind, as clear as if he is standing in the room with her. What would he say? Would he be sad? Angry? Would he even care? The man had not talked to her since that night three days ago. Why did his opinion matter? He would never know, and even if he did, why would his opinion matter?

Minako grabs a cup from the counter top, filling it with the freezing water that seemed to tear at her skin like hail. She recites the facts one more time before turning off the shower, and wrapping a towel around herself. It takes two steps to walk out of the small bathroom and out to her naked senpai. Akihiko is sitting on the bed, touching a part of himself that she never thought she'd see. He caresses the spot next to him.

She dumps the cup of water on his head, Drenching him from head to toe. Her pile of clothes is on the floor next to his. She can see Akihiko jump off the bed in her peripheral vision but she is focused on her clothes. It would look rumpled and messy if she put them on but there wasn't much choice. It was that or walk around naked. Akihiko was waking up behind her. His voice cut through the blankness in her mind.

"What...What the hell? Why it is so cold...? WHY AM I NAKED?! What did we...?"

"We didn't do anything. I'll meet you outside." Minako's sentences are curt but they betrayed no emotion. Not anger. Not embarrassment.

Akihiko can't help staring at his leader. The girl almost always had her hair tied up, but now it flowed freely, going slightly past her shoulders. The longest strands come almost to the middle of her breasts. They are bare. Bare like the rest of her pale, soft-looking skin. He can see the very end of a pink scar on her left hip and another one above her right shoulder. They decorate her body like badges of honor. Scars from battle? Or something else altogether. He punches himself before his eyes can wander any further. Grabbing his clothes from the pile next to the bed, he rushes into the bathroom, trying his best to push the image of her out of his mind.

"I can finally reach you!" Fuuka's soft voice resonates in both their minds. "I'm sorry I couldn't reach you sooner. The shadow was controlling your thoughts. You've all been separated, please regroup and go back to that big room from before. The shadow is still there."

"I hear you loud and clear!" Akihiko is shouting from the bathroom. Minako expected him to take a shower but he appeared in front of her after only a few minutes. If it weren't for his obvious sexual excitement and profuse sweating he would've looked almost normal.

Akihiko rubs the back of his neck. He isn't meeting her eyes. There is shame written all over his face. How much would he remember? Minako found that she didn't really care. "About what happened earlier..."

Minako closes her eyes and pastes on a smile. "Nothing happened, senpai. Don't worry." She tries to find the right emotion to describe what had happened in that room, but nothing comes to her. There is no shame, no desire, no disgust. She can't even pull up the most basic emotion: anger. There **is** nothing. The idea of Akihiko running his hands over her naked body had brought her absolutely nothing.

* * *

Rage. That was the only thing I could feel. Chidori had seen everything, more or less.

"They're about to come out." She'd been watching me almost the entire time. Something like apprehension flitted across her face. I've never seen her worried before so it might've been that.

"...Faster than I expected." Takaya is frowning. My anger escapes him completely. He'd been too focused on the scene in front of him to notice I'd been acting strangely. We watch them leave and when we are sure they are gone, he smiles. I can see a new plan forming behind his eyes. "That was quite a show. Absolutely fascinating. Don't you think, Jin?"

He didn't turn to look at me, but his voice cuts into my anger. I pushed the thought of Sanada and Minako to the back of my mind, fighting to keep my voice calm. "Very."

"Let us go. There is much to be done."

* * *

I spend the next few weeks in a stupor. All I do is work. Get requests, dig up information, work on grenades, bombs, bullets for Takaya. Kill. Repeat. I give my phone to Chidori and try my best not to think about the girl who sometimes made me want to laugh and sometimes made me want to stab someone. I didn't want to talk to her. I didn't want to think about her. My brain had other ideas.

When I wasn't paying attention, my mouse would hover over the Hemelin icon. Sometimes, I'll sign on, only to play a few matches until I see her log in and immediately run away like a coward. Things had been so much simpler. Chidori had been right.

She reads through all my messages. She's read the old ones several times, and I can hear my phone beep when a new one comes. She's sworn not to respond to any of them, but the girl wasn't known for keeping her promises. Her eyes seem to spark with intrigue every so often and she'll draw in her sketchbook with my phone open to a specific message. Despite my best attempts, I can't help myself from looking over her shoulder.

The dreams happen almost daily. Sometimes it's pretty simple. Just images of her face, or things we did together. At other times I'll see something that will cement itself in my mind for days. A hug. Holding hands. Us as children. Us kissing. Impossible dreams. The worst of it are the nightmares. I'll see her that night in July, on Shirakawa Boulevard with Sanada. Where he'd held her. Where he'd probably kissed her and even... I couldn't finish the thought. I didn't allow my mind to wander that far. Ever.

The fact that the Shadow had been controlling them didn't matter. Every inch of me screamed in anger. I wanted to know what he did to her. What she'd done to him.

One night, long after Takaya had disappeared for his Dark Hour mission, I enter Chidori's room to get her for a late dinner. She is working on her sculpture. Numerous sketchpads litter the floors. I pick up the one I'd seen the most often. There is a single rose on the front. I flip through a few pages before her drawings give me pause. I throw the pad open at her feet.

"What the hell is this?"

Inside is an incredibly detailed sketch of me and Minako, rendered in complete black and white. Her right hand is reaching up to touch my face. The fingers of my left hand are locked between tendrils of her hair, tilting her up to look at me. My eyes are closed. It almost looks like I am leaning down to give her a kiss. My glasses are in her left hand, but her arm is wrapped around my neck. Her hand resting in my hair at the back of my head.

Chidori glances at the drawing briefly before returning to the slab of stone that is halfway into becoming a throne of kings. "It's what I see when I read your messages."

"Are you kidding?"

She doesn't answer. Her way of saying no. I pick up a different sketchpad, looking through more of the drawings in the back. Many of them are the two of us in positions that are equally as provocative. They aren't horrible. If I was completely honest, I liked a majority of it even though I couldn't imagine the two of us ever being this close. As I reach the end, my heart stops completely. I can feel a blush creeping up my neck and into my cheeks. This is impossible. Even the muses wouldn't be able to give someone the ability to draw this.

Minako is in a frilly two-piece bikini on a beach. She has a volleyball in her hands. The sea water is coming up to her thighs. Her hair looks messy but dry, falling around her shoulders. Sanada and Iori are across from her in similar beach attire.

"What about this one?"

Chidori sighs before turning to look at the drawing. Clearly, she is already sick of me. Chidori wipes the chalk from her hands onto her apron and pulls my phone from her pocket to open up a picture I have never seen. It is almost a direct replica of what she'd drawn. "She sent it 2 days ago. The lighting is pretty. Whoever took that picture knew what they were doing."

I make a grab for the phone but Chidori is faster. "You've been banned. You're not getting this back until the next full moon."

I growl from the floor. I'd fallen in my poorly executed attempt to steal the thing. "It's mine! If I want it back, you need to give it to me."

"Your exact instructions are to hold on to it until the next full moon. If Takaya calls or needs something then I will relay the message. That is all."

"Cancel that order."

"Denied." She goes back to her sculpture, once again hiding the phone in the pocket of her apron and ignoring me completely.

The drawings from her sketchpad are still open in front of me. As tempting as they were, I hold back from looking any deeper. I could feel two emotions raging in my chest that night. The first was regret that I'd asked Chidori to watch my phone, and by extension, me. The second is a deep and sharp pang of jealousy at Akihiko Sanada. The man had touched her. Probably kissed her. He'd seen her in a bikini. Possibly even had her in his bed. Every fiber of my being told me one thing: I would kill him. Without any hesitation.

* * *

 **Next Chapter: 10/29 Rank 6**


	9. Rank 6

**A/N: To all the lovely people reading. Thank you for the support. There aren't many of you, but know that you are the best, and this subpar writer loves you.**

* * *

June 6th 8:47PM Waxing Gibbous

She was causing trouble. A week after we'd gone to the arcade, she appeared in my backyard, almost literally. Iori, Takeba, and Arisato stormed in on the gangs who occupied the alley underneath our apartment, asking questions about one of their classmates. I watched them from the kitchen window with Chidori next to me.

"Shouldn't you help her?"

My body wants to move, but logic dictates I should stay. I couldn't help her. Not right then. It would ruin everything. For one thing, it would reveal where I lived. For another, Shinjiro Arigaki would be here any minute, and he might say something necessary should we all run into each other. "She'll be okay. She's a tough girl."

Chidori stares at me for another minute, blinking twice. It's her way of shrugging before turning her eyes back to the scene. Takeba is running her mouth, antagonizing the thugs that surrounded them. The girl sounded brave, but she is standing behind Arisato and Iori. Clearly, she was all bark and no bite. Minako was right. She didn't have friends. Not really.

One of the guys knee Iori, the only male in the group. Minako grabs his shoulder to stop her comrade from falling, but the man is down for the count. She wouldn't be able to take down all of her attackers while protecting the two losers behind her. It was impossible, no matter how strong she was.

 _Help her!_

 _Don't do it! She's not important._

 _She's going to get hurt._

 _Remember the plan!_

Thoughts and scenarios run through my mind. The choice is agonizing. Luckily, I am saved from making one when the unlikely hero arrives in an ugly overcoat. Aragraki appears right one time, head-butting one of the thugs in the face. Blood spurts from the guy's nose. It lands on his friends as he falls to the ground. The other thugs pull him up, but they are clearly afraid. Aragaki was trying to send a message and it was working. The party disbands soon afterward. Aragaki stays behind to talk to the trio, but they're speaking too quietly for me to hear.

"Did you catch anything they said?"

"Medea…Medea is telling me one of their friends is missing. A girl named Fuuka."

"Was she on the list of persona users?"

Chidori shakes her head. Useless then. Takaya wouldn't care to know about this. "C'mon, let's get back to work."

After the trio leaves, Aragaki would be coming up here to get his month's supply of drugs. Takaya left the stash in a cupboard in the kitchen. I'd give Aragaki a few extra pills this time. He played a good hero.

* * *

June 8th Dark Hour Full Moon

It's the first full moon since our observations first started. Takaya is working on an assassination but Chidori and I are tasked with keeping watch on the Persona Users. The nights just started so we haven't learned much. The classmate that they are looking for had been lured into the Tower of Demise. This was a rescue mission.

"Have they regained connection?"

Medea could use the connections Personas made with one another. See what they saw, sometimes even steal their capabilities. The girl had so many powers, it put me and Takaya to shame. Then again, she'd been using her Persona nearly her whole life.

"No."

We'd lost the ability to track their movements when the Dark Hour started. That meant that they had lost contact too. It looked like Kirijo and Takeba were waiting at the bottom of the Tower of Demise while Arisato and the boys are lost somewhere in the upper levels.

" Can you hone in on any of them?"

Chidori shakes her head and I groan in frustration. This entire mission had been pointless. I hate waiting, but I hate being useless even more. Moros is apt for combat but has no role in reconnaissance. What was happening in there? I say nothing else, simply watching my partner quietly. Something needed to happen soon or I would blow up a building for kicks.

"Jin."

"What?"

"They've found her. The girl. Fuuka. Her persona is amazing. She gives me the clearest picture. Minako Arisato is fine, but Kirijo and Takeba are under attack in the lobby."

"What do you mean they're under attack?!"

"Shadows. Giant ones. They're...shifting. Their abilities keep changing. It's almost as strong as the Arisato girl. "

"Are they winning?"

"Yes. They are winning. It's...amazing. They're stronger than us...So...Much..." Everything was going well until then. Too well. Chidori screams. Medea has her hands wrapped around the girl's throat, effectively shutting her up. My friend had lost control.

"Stop! Chidori stop!" I wrap one arm around her forehead to hold her in place before using a razor blade to cut a deep line along her wrists. The blood is immediate. It comes in rivers, sliding over her wrists and onto her white dress. Chidori snaps out of the trance, and Medea disappears into the depths of her mind. My friend is breathing hard but there are no other signs of the episode. The situation was under control. It would be okay. The wound would heal in a few minutes. It always did.

"Jin. We need to leave. Now. We need to tell Takaya everything."

* * *

June 13th 11:52PM Waning Gibbous

Minako's eyes drift to her phone. She'd left him several messages but she hadn't heard from him since the full moon. Her subconscious told her this wasn't a coincidence. He knew something. She sighs, putting her pencil down not to her unfinished homework. There was no point working right now. She was too distracted.

She opens her computer, signing onto Hemlin. She hadn't touch the game in over a month. After she'd met ShiroiTobira in real life, she hadn't seen the point. He isn't on, unfortunately, but she plays a few games in arena to occupy her time. The match ends in her favor, and she goes into another one, challenging everyone in sight. Her mind drifts while she plays.

ShiroiTobira. His messages are floating like puzzle pieces in her mind. He was such a strange man. The things he did and said, were almost contradictory to one another: pushing and pulling her away all at once. Even this bout of silence was odd. Nothing preceded it. They didn't have any argument. He didn't say he would be busy. He just stopped answering one night, and that was it. The most obvious solution was that he was connected to the Dark Hour in some manner. Perhaps he's woken up during the Dark Hour, and had been eaten by shadows. She knew nothing about him. Not his address or where he worked. She couldn't look for him to confirm that theory though she doubted its plausibility.

There was also a chance he was an enemy. Perhaps he'd been spying on her and the lack of contact was because his superior ordered him to stop, but what where the chances of that? She'd been watching too many movies.

The girl finishes her match before checking her friend list one more time. He's not online, and Hemlin holds no value to her without him on it.

Minako finds a blank spot on the wall, trying to fit the pieces together in her mind. She'd met a stranger on the internet. She had known close to nothing about him before their meeting. The first attempt at contact had been a failure. He had been nearby, watching her, but failed to show. That was already suspicious, but there were several logical, normal reasons why he didn't come out to meet her. The fact that she'd beat up two grown men in front of him was more than enough reason not to meet her. He responded well to her flirtations, but there always seemed to be hesitation to make any real progress. Another suspicious sign. He ceased contact on the night of the full moon before a giant shadow fight. The pieces were slowly falling into place, and the picture it was painting of him was ugly.

She blinks again to clear away the mental image she'd drawn. This was why she didn't have friends. She didn't trust anyone. Everyone had an ulterior motive. Minako found those too. It didn't take her long. Everyone in the dorm held their secrets close to their hearts. Mitsuru Kirijo wasn't a bad person, but she was willing to put alltheir lives on the line for her own selfish reasons. Junpei didn't care for anyone here. He was using SEEs as a means of avoiding his alcoholic father. Akihiko is like her. He lives in the past. He'd failed to save his little sister when they were younger. He fights now to appease that misplaced sense of guilt. Miki, her name was.

Yukari was a mystery for now, but Minako was sure that her reasons for fighting would come up in conversation at some point. Selfish reasons. No one in this dorm lived for others. They would cry. Mourn. Maybe some of them would even miss her, but their lives were not intertwined. The bonds here are flimsy. They'll break at the slightest touch.

Once they graduated or defeated all of the shadows, SEEs would be finished. Their little group would disappear. They would leave for their own path, and she would be alone again. They weren't friends. Comrades. Partners, maybe. But they weren't friends.

Minako shakes her head. It was happening again. Her emotions are getting to her. She would try not to think of her situation too often, but it rarely worked. Everyone had an ulterior motive, some of them were just easier to see than others. The hardest one to figure out was probably the man named Shirato. He wasn't part of SEEs. He wasn't someone from school. He was just someone she had met by accident. That was the story anyway.

The stickers that they'd made at the arcade are now scattered inside various notebooks. Minako looks at them fondly, rubbing her thumb over her favorite one. He is looking at her, his orange-tinted glasses hiding his eyes. There is a blush on his cheeks. The two of them hadn't been forced together. A coincidence. Was he like her? A man without a future?

There was no way he was an enemy. Their encounter had been a coincidence. After all, the first time they'd met was because he offered to help her study. But the real root was Hemelin, a game that she didn't even buy; Minako would need to thank Junpei for the gift when she got the chance.

Minako walks as quietly as possible to the bathroom to wash her face. This train of thought was getting her nowhere. No matter how many times she told herself that it was a coincidence, the questions nagged at her. The man didn't want to be her friend but every time she saw him, it looked like he was forcing himself to make conversation. What was his motive? Why was he trying to befriend her while simultaneously keeping her at arm's length? What was his endgame?

* * *

June 21st 4:52 PM Waning Crescent

Takaya gathers us in the kitchen. He is examining my work. I'd made three Evokers just like the ones SEEs carried. It had taken me a week to analyze the hard data that I'd stolen and another week to make them.

"Do they work?"

"Yeah. Chidori tested them the other day since she's the only one whose off the pills. Works like a charm."

"And our Personas?"

"As strong as before, but you know the risks."

He nods. We all knew the risks. We weren't real persona-users. Not like the people we'd seen. Not taking the pills could kill us, but if we were all together, we could stop it from happening. At least we could postpone it a little. We would keep each other alive, like we've always done.

"The next full moon is July 7th. They're sure to have another fight. I'll join the two of you for the observation. For now, keep your eye on them. Don't engage."

At that, he leaves me and Chidori alone. I immediately pull out my phone. I hadn't checked any of my mail while I'd been working but Minako had sent me three messages. The first was a snippet of her day from weeks before, the other two are questions asking me when I have free time.

Chidori doesn't hesitate to pull me into my room again, locking the door behind her. "You shouldn't go."

I turn my head to face her, putting my response on hold. "Why not? You heard Takaya. We're supposed to be watching them."

"He won't be happy, knowing what you're doing."

"It's for the mission. He'll understand."

"Really?" She stares at me from my bed. Her arms are folded defiantly. "Jin, do you know what you're doing?"

I did. Of course, I did. She was, _is_ the enemy, but she was clearly special. If I could understand why, then maybe we could beat them. As of now, it would be tough. There were more of them, and they could control their personas better. I tell her as much.

"Everything I do is for Takaya."

She lets go of my arm and nods. Her eyes tell me she doesn't believe me, but she'll play along for now. I give Minako a call as I run out the door.

* * *

Rank 4

"Hello?" Minako doesn't bother to look at the caller ID. Her hands are already busy helping Fuuka make sweets.

"It's me." There is a pause, "Jin. Shirato."

As if she could forget. Thoughts of him are frequent. "Ah, Shirato-san. It's been so long. How are you?"

"Yeah. It has. Do you want to meet up? The docks behind Port Island Station. 6 O'clock?"

Minako looks at the clock hanging above her head. That gave her roughly a half hour. She could make it if she ran. "Sure. I'll see you there."

She throws off her apron, screaming an apology to the blue-haired girl as she takes off. No time to change. Luckily, she generally wore outdoor clothes around the dorm. It wasn't safe wearing pajamas with the guys around.

The docks are situated behind Iwatodai Station. There are several ways to get there, but the most direct is going through a rough alleyway. She'd only been there once to get information when Fuuka had been missing. Now, she runs through it again, ignoring the odd looks the occupants give her. When the walls of surrounding buildings open up, all she can see is water. The line of abandoned warehouses to her right don't even give her pause.

The man she is looking for stands at the end of the pier when she arrives, out of breath. He looks surprised to see her. "Are you okay?"

She is gasping, pushing out her words between breaths. "Yeah...Just...fine...Had...to run..." When she can properly breathe again, she pulls a clear plastic baggie filled with a few pieces of chocolate out of the purse she has slung over one shoulder. "These are for you."

His eyes seem to grow even wider under his glasses, and she has a sudden interest in knowing how he looks without them. The urge to grab them is there, but she hold backs. That move would be too brash right now. Maybe next time.

"Why...Why would you get me chocolate?"

"I made them in the cooking club with a friend." The word sounds foreign on her lips, but the lie slips out easily enough. Friends. Everyone used it so loosely.

He doesn't take them. His expression is a mixture of what looks like suspicion and curiosity. The face intrigues her. Why is he suspicious? What does he want to know? Why can't he just ask? These thoughts were frequent, but she never voiced them. He isn't aware that his face always gives him away. "You...don't like chocolate?"

He seems to blush, turning his face away from her. "I'm, uh...allergic, to chocolate."

"Oh..." Minako tries not to let the disappointment show on her face before putting the chocolate back in her bag. "I'll make you something else next time. Is there anything you like to eat?"

He doesn't answer her, sitting down on the edge of the dock. Shirato pats the seat next to him, motioning for her to sit down. "Anything is fine."

She's moves as close to him as possible, so their legs can touch during the movement. This was deceptive, she knew that. Using the fact that she was a woman to charm him into talking about himself was morally wrong, but she feels no guilt. People are easy to manipulate. It's not hard to elicit certain reactions when you wanted something. "So where have you been these past few weeks?"

He stares at her for a few minutes, as if he is deciding how to best answer her. He did this often. Shirato didn't know how to stall for time. If he didn't know what to say, then he said nothing. He kept a lot from her, that was obvious. But he probably didn't know how transparent he was. The man was a horrible spy.

"Working. My. Friend. Needed me to do something for him." Minako couldn't help but wonder if this is the same friend that he loved and would die for. Was this friend trying to use Shirato in some way? That would explain his strange behavior. "Did you miss me or something?"

"Yes." She doesn't hesitate in her response and his eyes grow wide, most likely in shock. She can't help but smile. He liked to keep his secrets but the boy didn't really know how to fish for answers. Or communicate properly. She'd made the deduction weeks ago that he probably didn't have much in the way of social interaction. She knew how to act to keep his attention, to make him surprised. To make him want to come back. "I thought maybe you didn't want to talk to me anymore."

There is a brief look of pain on his face, but it disappears as quickly as it had come. What was that?

"I like talking to you."

"Me too." She reaches for his hand. He flinches but lets her take it. He's done that before too. Did he know? Did he realize how obvious he was? None of his reactions made sense in a logical way, but the picture in her mind was still coming together. Minako wanted nothing more than to rip open his head and steal all his secrets.

They sit in silence watching the sun set, each lost in thoughts of the other. He is the one who breaks the peace.

"I hate people, you know."

"What?" Where did that come from?

"People are greedy and selfish. They'll all lie to you to get what they want. You probably shouldn't trust them."

Minako didn't trust people. She didn't trust him at all, but those words put a chink in that disbelief. Why would he say that to her? She knew she shouldn't trust people. Him especially, so what was the point of him telling her that? What was he trying to do? "Does that include you?" Her eyes watch his face, searching for a reason. She was generally pretty good at reading people, but there are a few exceptions. He is one of them. Guilt and sorrow are etched into his features. He seemed to age into someone much older under her scrutiny.

"Yes."

Minako decides to stand up, pulling him with her. They start walking home in silence, but she is completely lost in her thoughts. Was this another ploy or had he been honest? Did he mean it this time? What was he trying to tell her?

Shirato stops in front of a dark apartment building behind Port Island Station, his face emptied of all the emotion it held earlier. "It's time for me to go."

Minako watches him for another minute. Her eyes take in all of his features. He's pale, like someone who rarely left the house. His blue hair is cut strangely, like someone who doesn't know what looks good. He has a dorky smile, and ugly glasses that cover pretty eyes. He looks cute when he blushes. She could list a million things about him that contradicted; didn't make any sense. There are hundreds of truths she wants to tell him; questions she wants to ask him. But she could only find one sentence that mattered. One lie. Three words: "I trust you."

He takes a step back, his eyes searching her face for a motive, or a deception, she isn't sure which. He would find neither. He wasn't a good liar, but she was.

"You shouldn't."

Who do you trust when everyone has secrets to hide? Everyone lives a separate life. To be devoid of secrets means to be complete with someone else. She did not trust Jin Shirato. There were too many questions in her mind. Too many coincidences and suspicions. No. She didn't trust him at all, but she wanted to. Oh how badly, she wanted to. If only to make the mad questions go away. "I know."

A thousand emotions seem to move through his face. The man really did wear his heart on his sleeve, no matter how sneaky he thought he was. "You..." He stopps abruptly, rubbing the bridge of his nose under his glasses. He sighs before looking her directly in the face, a smile forming on his lips. Genuine and sweet, it once again transforms him into someone different. Here was another part of him, she wanted to understand. "Fries. I like potato fries."

* * *

 **Next Chapter: 10/24 Rank 5**


	10. First Kiss

**To Elana: Not gay, I want to say. I'm not sure what I would identify Jin as, but she believes he's in love with Takaya.**

* * *

August 6th Full Moon Dark Hour Rank 7

"Are you ready?"

Takaya and I stand hidden from view on top of what used to be a military bunker. Chidori bailed. I'd gotten into an argument with her about my involvement and she disappeared tonight in protest. She didn't explain to Takaya, but the man didn't care. We didn't need Chidori. We weren't going to fight tonight. The plan would be simple. They would enter the bunker and we'd close the door on them, leaving them to starve to death or get killed by the Shadow deep within. I'd already checked the controls and hacked them hours ago.

Minako's face appeared in my mind constantly. It wasn't at all to imagine that last meeting. Her eyes had been closed as she walked away. Her steps were energetic, almost bouncy. Like she was excited. _I can't wait._ Isn't that what she said? It never gave me pause but I am doomed to live a cursed life by the Kirijo group. She isn't. She is beautiful, smart, and so full of life. She has all the time in the world. Why would she come tonight when all that awaited her was fighting and pain?

Takaya is looking at me expectantly. This plan would fail without me. He can't trap them if I don't help him right now. I could theoretically, leave everything behind. I could betray him, run off with her, but I wouldn't. Despite all the panicking in my system, I didn't want to. Why am I so apathetic to my own death, but so panicked when it comes to hers? She's brought me back to those days long before I was taken in by the Kirijo group. When I wandered the streets by myself, wishing someone would pity me. Hoping someone would love and take care of me. My own weakness sickens me.

"Yes." I answer, watching the road. The van arrives fifteen minutes after the Dark Hour starts. The whole gang piles out, completely unaware of our presence. I can see Minako walk into the building first, with Fuuka behind her. Chidori has taken an interest in the blue-haired girl. I think she sees her as something close to a rival. She talks about her often, like the two of them have known each other for years.

The others watch them, staking out the entrance, making sure to check the surroundings for danger. Sanada is standing closest to the front, his eyes are trained on Minako. He is the one person I had no qualms about killing tonight.

Minako gives them a thumbs up. The building is clear. Safe. Everyone piles inside. Fuuka is inside her Persona, and it occurs to me that her powers are similar to Medea. That would explain Chidori's strange attachment to the girl, if nothing else. The Shadow they are looking for is several meters underground and the move further into the bunker.

It's time.

Takaya swings down from the upper level, using the railing as a steadier and I instantly followed him. We land on the metal floors with a loud thud. The teenagers immediately turn at our arrival. I ignore the others, keeping my eyes on Minako. Her face is the only one devoid of shock. The fact that she was a spy no longer holds any water. She knew that I'd laid a trap for them tonight, and she still brought them all here. She was innocent when she met me. It had all been a coincidence. Some twisted whim of fate. It was almost comical considering the amount of time I spent spying on **her.**

Fuuka seems the most surprised, probably because her persona had failed her at this crucial moment. "How...? Lucia didn't sense a thing til now!"

"Who are you people?!" Sanada is yelling, and already I want to blow his brains out. My rage at what he's done hasn't subsided. If anything, it's only gotten stronger, but all of my attention is focused on Minako. He would need to wait.

Her eyes are bright, watching me intently, completely ignoring Takaya. Everyone else is staring him with a mix of fear and fascination as they should. He commanded the attention, walking closer to them. The space between us and SEES is huge. We are inches from the door and they are inches from the opening to their hell.

"This is the first time we've met in person. My name is Takaya. This is Jin. We are known to some as Strega. From what we can tell, you've undertaken a "righteous" battle to save the world. But we've come here tonight to put an end to that dream."

"What?!" Kirijo seems taken aback. She pulls out her rapier, pointing it at us. "Why on earth would you want that?!"

Takaya smiles, ignoring her completely. "Tartarus is standing beautifully. Can't you see that?"

I speak up, but my eyes are still watching the only girl that matters. I want her to understand. Need her to. "If the Shadows and Tartarus disappear, then so do our powers."

Minako's eyes grow wide, and hope springs in my heart. Maybe she will understand. Maybe she will forgive me. Even join our side.

"Powers..." Kirijo doesn't get it. She is just a pretty face with mad ideas. She only knows how to use the things around her. A parasite. Just like the rest of her family.

"Only a select few hold the power of the persona!" Takaya is getting revved up, like he always does. The man is passionate. He has an infinite number of ideas, and regardless of how ridiculous they were, he made it a reality. Our powers sprang from our personas, but Takaya was on a different level. A god among mortal men. "The Dark Hour is a frontier that is ours alone to explore...just like the Tower of Demise. And you want to give that up? Why, it's madness."

"You're the crazy ones! Who knows what'll happen if we don't hunt down these shadows." Takeba is yelling. I hate her. Her voice. Her personality. Everything about her pisses me off. "People could die!"

"There will always be disasters. Whether they arise because of human folly or shadows is irrelevant. Surely you feel the power the personas and the Dark Hour has given you."

"Not at all." Minako speaks up for the first time. She is the only one who doesn't look angry or afraid. Instead, what I see on her face surprises me: happiness and excitement. Why? Her expression is completely out of place, a lamp floating at the mouth to hell. An emotion that doesn't connect at all with the situation. "I'm not powerful because of the Dark Hour. I'm powerful because I choose to fight. That power is in all of us, and it makes you weak."

* * *

Minako was almost bursting at the seams. Everything she wanted to know about Jin, and here he is. Here **they** are. Finally being honest with each other. It almost makes her want to forget about the Shadow hiding deep underground and go away to grab a cup of coffee with him. Almost.

She barely hears or sees the others. Her eyes are focused only on him. She'd expected this. Repeating that he wasn't the enemy had been useless. She's known, maybe from the beginning, that they would need to face each other like this one day. It is almost easier knowing that he's been a spy all along than to keep guessing at his motives. This is freedom. Minako can feel a manic laugh rising in her chest, waiting to burst.

The other man, Takaya, Jin's friend keeps talking. "How about the rest of you? Do you also wish to return to your pathetic, ordinary lives?" Minako has the vague thought that she probably should be jealous, but she feels nothing even remotely close. This man is the one who holds Jin's attention? The one he is wiling to die for? He seems like a pathetic excuse for a human being, much less a lover.

Everyone else looks offended at Takaya's question. Especially Yukari. "You think I like this?"

"I don't enjoy this one bit." Fuuka adds.

 _Speak for yourself._

Minako loves fighting. Junpei does too. She know he talks about being a hero. They've had several long conversations about it. Fighting the shadows makes him feel awesome. It makes him feel like he is worth something. Akihiko too, his reasons are close. He is atoning for his mistakes, and fighting shadows makes him stronger. They are all here because they want to fight: for each other, for themselves, for the past, and for the future.

"You're all hypocrites." Jin is yelling. He looks angry, hurt. Maybe he expected this to end differently. For her to go to him and apologize for what she said on that bridge. Minako regrets nothing. She will fight shadows tonight, and for the rest of her life if she has any say in the matter. She would destroy them because she loved it. His hatred didn't matter, not if it meant giving up this feeling.

"To hell with you." He whispers. Jin throws several grenades in their direction and smoke envelopes them. Jin and Takaya are nowhere to be seen. There is a strange sound coming from the entrance, like two large pieces of stone are grinding together. It takes her a moment to realize that the doors to the bunker are closing. The others rush to it, but it's useless. They'll never make it in time. Jin and Takaya slipped through. Jin turns to look at her in the last minute, the smoke and stone obscuring most of his features. There is so much pain and anger on his face, Minako wants to run to him and kiss it all away, but this isn't a fairytale, and those things din't happen.

She could only smile, an apology for the man who betrayed her. The door closed with a slam.

* * *

I can't breathe. She is going to die in there. The bunk is old, all means of ventilation shut off. If the Shadow didn't kill her, the lack of oxygen would. If she somehow found a way get air, she would starve. Death was closing in on her from all sides. The authorities might never find her body and even if they did, her death would be written down as an accident like all the others I'd killed. Images of her dead body are seared into my skull.

"Jin, it's time to go." Takaya is looking at me expectantly. He would never suspect it. That I had, for a few moments, thought of betraying him. I almost can't believe it of myself. For a very brief space in time, I had actually thought of leaving him. None of it mattered now. Minako would be dead before the hour was up, if she wasn't already. Even if she made it out of the bunker, she would never come near me again. It was over.

That suffocating feeling never left me.

We went home. I was silent the entire way. Takaya was exuberant. He seemed to talk constantly about some grand design, completely missing the fact that I was a million miles away. Missing my mutiny, and all the rebellious thoughts that now ran through my mind. With every word, I seemed to drift farther and farther away.

Chidori is in her room when we make it home. She's finished her sculpture. The throne is magnificent. The edges are smooth but an intricate design runs through it. There is a natural sparkle that seems to come more from the stone than any of the artificial lights around the room. She sits in the seat, staring into open space. Her eyes sharpen when we walk in. Her attention is focused me.

"How did it go?" Her soft voice seems to state the question, like she already knows the answer.

"As well as you could expect." Takaya shrugs. "They were fools. Couldn't see the world for what it really was. They were disposed of."

Chidori doesn't respond. She continues to stare at me. I refuse to look at her. Mumbling something that is probably more sound than words to Takaya, I walk to my room and close the door behind me. Chidori walks in noiselessly, disturbing my peace. She doesn't say a word. Instead, she's sitting in my computer chair. Waiting. Waiting for me to give her what she wants.

After what felt like hours I can't take it anymore. "Stop staring." No response.

"I'm going to kill you." No response.

I pull out my Evoker, aiming it at her head. She doesn't even flinch. "I'm in a really shitty mood. Get out."

"Is she dead?" I flinch, and she smirks. A mouse caught in her trap.

"Why'd you do it? You know Takaya is nothing without you."

I throw my Evoker at her as hard as I can. She catches it before the gun has the chance to hit her in the face. "She wouldn't join us. She doesn't understand."

Chidori drops my Evoker on the floor. A rare show of anger is spread on her face. "You don't understand! If you want something, take it. That's what Takaya does. That's what I do. You're a weakling. You sicken me, Jin." I expect her to slam the door, but there is only a soft click as she leaves. Like she's an apparition.

I collapse onto my pillow. My glasses are sitting on my desk. The world is strange without them. In this state, I might as well be blind, so I close my eyes. The darkness swallows me.

* * *

 _"Jin..." His mother is sobbing, but she doesn't take his hand. She does nothing. There is nothing left. "I'm so sorry." He wants to tell her that this is a lie. If she was sorry then she would not have sold him. Not like this. The scene shifts._

 _He can feel a burning on his hip. The numbers that brand him as an experiment have been seared into his skin. Numbers that prove he is something less than a human. "01A057. Next."_

 _The Kirijo experiments have failed. The kids are dead. The Shadows have escaped. We are the only ones left. Around me is a sea of bodies. Where will I go? What will I eat? Am I fated to die here like the others? A boy stands in front of me. He is older, in his teens. A small girl stands behind him, hardly older than a toddler. He asks me for my name._

 _I begin reciting the numbers etched onto my back, but he stops me. "Not your number. Your name. The name given to you. It is lost in the canyon of my memories. The freshest and the newest of tortures are sitting at the very top. The are what my mind always goes to first: Shadows, beatings, cold rooms, and burning pains. It takes me a long time to remember I once had a mother and a father. One is dead, the other should be. Neither matters anymore. "Shirato, Jin."_

 _The other boy smiles. "Hello, Jin. My name is Takaya. This is Chidori. I think we're the only ones still alive."_

 _I don't answer him. There is no point. He is correct. Everyone else is dead. The evidence is in the rubble. The bodies. Nothing stirs. There is nothing else._

 _"If you want, we'll be a family now. I'll take care of you. His hand is outstretched, and he pulls me to my feet. He walks between me and the girl named Chidori, one hand holding each of us. Like a father. He is my Father now. Chidori, my Sister. They are my new family now. The first one sold me away. The second is dead. This will be my third. I met them at Armageddon surrounded by a parade of death._

 _Takaya is kind. He teaches me how to kill. "Listen. Anything can be used as a weapon. Even a pencil, when, you stab it here, can kill a person." He points to his eyes, and I learn. I learn to kill. When we kill, there is food, and a warm bed to sleep in. Takaya is warm. When we sleep, he is also nearby. He soothes us of the nightmares._

 _"Listen. There is nothing to be afraid of. When you kill someone, what happens?" I tell him: nothing. They go quiet. They go still. Nothing happens. "Exactly. It's not scary at all. Death is peaceful. It's kind. When you're dead, there are no nightmares." Chidori and I listen. We understand. Death is peaceful. It is calm. In death, there are no nightmares.  
_

 _He sleeps beside us, always. In the darkness, I press my lips to his neck. His back. His forehead. He never responds, always sleeping. Pretending. I place a kiss on his lips, and he turns away._

 _I am growing older. Takaya spends more time alone. He no longer sleeps with us. I ask him why. What is wrong with the two of us being together. He pauses, as if he's thinking. "It shows attachment. It's wrong. Never get too attached. Anything can be stripped away at any moment. Nothing is too beautiful or precious. We don't fall in love with anything. Love only breeds attachment"_

 _It is then that I understand. I am unloved._

* * *

A loud vibration disorients me, waking me up from the dreams. Memories. Either word, would be accurate. What's happening? What kind of person would call me in the middle of the night?

"I'm at the dock."

Her voice is instantly familiar. I don't need to wonder who is calling. I don't need to wonder why she is alive. The girl is made of miracles. The only thing I want to know is why. Why is she telling me that? I betrayed her. I tried to kill her. Why did she come back?

I throw open the door and run to her. Seven minutes. That's all it will take. I run until the breath leaves my lungs.

She is standing by the water. Every inch of her is illuminated by moonlight. Normal, natural moonlight that put the cuts and bruises of her body on display. Her tired face lights up when she sees me. "I just-"

I wrap my arms around her, cutting her off. I push my lips onto hers without any hesitation, all caution thrown to the wind. Takaya might've heard me leave. He might have come after me. Anyone could see this if they walked down that alley. I don't care. All I want right now is to kiss this girl who I had almost killed. She responds immediately. Her lips are cracked, but it is sweet. Like oranges. My grip around her waist tightens.

She pulls away to look at me, her red-brown eyes sparkling with delight. There is no blame in her eyes, no anger. Only warmth. She doesn't leave my grip. "I love you." Her lips crash back onto mine, and every horrible memory, every doubt in my mind washes away.

* * *

 **NC: 11/5 Promise of Summer**


	11. Rank 7

**A/N: Rated M for sexual themes.**

* * *

August 21st Waxing Gibbous 9:34pm Rank 7

Minako promised to keep her eyes closed but she could feel the anticipation growing in her chest. Jin called her to the shrine at around 9pm, after that he'd led her to a dark building a bit closer to the port, almost in the exact middle of where they lived. One of his hands were wrapped around her eyes, but the other held onto her own protectively. At least she wasn't in any danger of falling and breaking every bone in her body. They were moving up stairs, and through doorways. That much was obvious.

"Do you like it?"

Light spills onto her eyes, momentarily blinding her. It takes a lot of blinking before they adjust but by then, she has already lost the ability to speak. The walls are a soft gray but the ceiling is a dark blue. The roof is high, with an adjustable light. A soft, plush, brown carpet covers the floor. The bed is kind of plain: A western style frame and mattress with blue and green covers. A small dresser stands at the end. Across from the bed is a table. Jin's silver briefcase and some of his grenade tools are already scattered on top.

She is shocked into blankness. Her brain fails her. There is no explanation for what she is seeing, at least, not one she can believe in. This is room. Just a simple room with barely anything in it, so why did she feel like everything inside her belonged here? "You...What is all this?"

"You said you weren't ashamed to be with me, but I don't really want people to see us together. So...I got us this...Do you like it?" He is frowning, rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably. Minako lacks the words to answer him. There are no words at all, for this situation.

She collapses onto the floor, falling hard onto her knees. Jin is yelling something at her but none of his words reach her. He pulls her onto her feet and practically drags her to the bed, sitting her gently against the headrest. He sit by her thighs, slapping her gently in the face. His own face holds nothing but concern.

"Hey. Mina. You're scaring me. What's wrong? If you don't like it, I can throw everything out. This place is just a rental and it's cheap."

The thought of him throwing the place away snaps her out of her stupor and her eyes tear itself back to attention. She flings her arms around him, tackling him so hard he falls backward onto the bed. He couldn't escape her if he tried. "NO! No...I like it. I like it. I'm just...happy. Really, really happy."

* * *

Hours later, Minako has returned to being herself. I have my laptop out of my briefcase so I can work, digging through messages on the revenge website and doing some more basic work for Takaya. Minako is lying against my back with the blanket wrapped around her, most of it spilling onto me. Our little room is warm, and it flows into me, burning away the cold that had buried itself into my bones.

This time is everything I want. I could be with her as myself. I could still do what I needed to do for Takaya. I could have everything as long as I was here with her. The thought brings a smile to my face.

My hands are busy but my mind is mostly occupied on her. We talk at random, about anything and everything. She mentions bringing some clothes to put in the dresser and maybe some decorations for the room. We share a bathroom and common rooms with other people in the building but we probably wouldn't need them much. There are other places we need to be most of the time, but this little room would be for us. Our sanctuary.

"And then he told me not to fight, Akihiko of all people, can you believe that?"

They story started with them going out for a bowl of ramen after school. The way she'd described him, made it obvious. He was definitely in love with her. "Yeah, I can. He's interested in you. He's probably pissed off that he's weaker than the girl he wants to be with." I try, but it's overwhelmingly hard to keep the cruelness out of my voice. Of all the things to bring up, why did it need to be him?

Minako chuckles softly, pulling the blanket further up to cover most of her head. "That's okay. I don't like a guy because he can protect me."

"Oh yeah? Then what do you like about a guy?"

There is a playful tone in her voice when she answers me. "Are you jealous? Why? You don't like me fighting either."

"That's because you're my..." Girlfriend. I was about to say girlfriend. But she isn't. We've never spoken about that. Labels or names. She didn't ask for either of those things. Plus, that wasn't the reason behind my needing her to quit. I didn't want her to fight because she was impeding Takaya's plan. She was making life harder for me. "If you didn't fight for SEEs we wouldn't need to be hiding here. We could just walk out in broad daylight, but you work for them."

"So if I stopped fighting in SEEs, you wouldn't mind me killing Shadows?"

I would. Takaya still wouldn't like it, and she'd be in even more danger alone. He would definitely take the chance to kill her. "I'd still need to stop you. Takaya's goal is to wipe out everyone else who knows about the Dark Hour."

She chuckles again, her voice even more playful than before. "Whatever. Nothing you or Akihiko can say will make a difference. I'm still going to fight Shadows."

I grit my teeth. " _Akihiko_ shouldn't be a part of your decision. And since when were you on a first name basis? He's older than you. You should be using his last name and adding a senpai or san at the end of that. He's just some guy in your school."

She laughs harder this time, moving off my back and taking her warmth with her. I almost reach out to grab her when she moves back into position again and the warmth returns to me. "Stop being jealous. You're right. He's just my senpai."

"Just your senpai who touched you in a love hotel." I couldn't keep the anger from seeping out. Knowing they were together was more than disgusting. The hatred burned like a flame in the pit of my stomach. I should have killed him that night at the shrine.

The air stilled, growing frosty. She moves away, this time scooting to the opposite end of the bed, by the wardrobe. "You were watching."

I've already come this far. It was too late to go back. "Yeah. But you probably already knew that didn't you... You're always laughing about how much I follow your every move."

"How much did you see?" Her voice is blank. Normally her questions were curious or playful, but now they are neither. Completely emotionless and impossible to read. I hate these moments with her the most.

"Why? What are you so afraid of?"

"I'm not afraid of anything." She throws the blanket at me and walks to the door. She has her hand wrapped around the doorknob before I realize she's about to leave. I grab her other hand and pull her into me, wrapping my arms around her to pin the petite girl to my body.

The room is small. I don't even need to get up to reach her. There is no resistance, but her whole body is still, rejecting my touch. My short nails dig into her skin as I whisper, "Where are you going?"

"Back to Akihiko." A sting of jealousy digs into my bones. It hurts. There is a volcano of anger in me waiting to boil over, but her voice holds nothing. As bare as the walls. She is still facing the door, her head turned away from me. I can't tell if she is joking, trying to make me angry, or if she's completely serious. There are no signs, but it doesn't matter. She's not going back to him if I can help it. He can never have her.

"You wouldn't."

"You seem to think I would." Her head leans back so she is resting against my shoulder. I realize then, that she is sitting between my legs. A provocative position, considering she is wearing a skirt. It would've made me blush if my face wasn't already red from anger.

"You were being controlled by shadows. Who knows what you would do?"

"I do. I know what I would do." She sighs, suddenly tired. "How much did you see?"

* * *

Minako isn't angry. She isn't even sad. There is no emotion in her voice because she is once again thrown back to that memory with Akihiko . Every time she thought about that night every feeling in her body seemed to escape her. It was the same way she felt about brushing her teeth or taking a shower. It was something that happened. That's all.

The way Jin is acting had been cute at first. Jealousy was such an ugly emotion, but she liked seeing it in others. Jealousy, lust, desperation, anger. They were all emotions that could change people in a split second. Make them do something they normally wouldn't. It destroyed as well as created. In this case, it was doing both. What had he seen? Why wouldn't he answer her?

She turns around so her knees are placed between his legs and she can look down on him. He seems so lost and confused that she almost wants to forgive him, like a puppy without its owner. She revels in it. "Do you want to know what we did?"

He swallows, clearly nervous, but nods. She moves to get behind him the way Akihiko had done to her, wrapping her arms under his, reaching her fingers for the zipper on his jacket. He doesn't move to stop her, nor to make it easier for her. He is reacting in almost the exact same way she had, the perfect dummy. She eases the jacket off his shoulders.

"You're all I have..."

Her lips are pressed to his ear as she whispers the words, her seduction pouring over his body. He flinches but doesn't react. This was clearly unnerving him, but she had to give him credit for his endurance. He didn't show any reaction to her touches. She pulls his t-shirt over his head, leaving his upper body bare. Jin's skin is ice old. There are scars lining his muscles along his back, his side and all over his arms. Near his waist, tattooed like a brand is a set of numbers.

 _01A057_

"Let me take care of you..."

This line is more loving than seductive. She really does want to take care of him. She wants to love him enough to make all the other pain in his life go away. Jin shivers against her touch but there is no other reaction. Her hand reaches for the button on his pants, swiftly undoing it with one hand. Thankfully the man didn't wear a belt, making her work that much easier. Her fingers are tracing the edge of his underwear when she feels his pulse quicken.

"Let me make love to you..."

A soft moan escapes his lips. He is leaning into her, and Minako can imagine that his pretty eyes are closed. Completely relaxed. Her right hand rubs the inside of his thigh as she places light kisses on his shoulder and neck. A nibble on the ear. His skin is cold and scarred but smooth; the complete opposite of how Akihiko had felt that night. The man beneath her felt like chipped marble.

His patience had clearly disappeared. She could feel him moving underneath her hands. In a split second decision, she dodged out of the way to reach into her bag and grab a bottle of water. Without a moment's hesitation, Minako unscrewed the top and poured what was left of the bottle, over the top of Jin's head.

The man splutters, clearly surprised by the turn of events. "What the hell was that?!

"That was what happened." Minako shrugs, moving off the bed to shake off the blanket. The poor thing was sacrificed to prove her point, a pity. The blanket was so warm and fluffy, like Koromaru.

"So...All those things you just said..." Jin looks a strange mix between angry, surprised, and mildly embarrassed. His cheeks are flushed. He doesn't look the least bit cold despite being half-naked.

"Akihiko said them to me, while under the spell." There are tissues in her bag and she uses them to dot the blanket. The water hadn't soaked in too much, thankfully.

"And the touching..."

"More Akihiko. He rubbed my chest too." Minako puts her own hands over her breasts to demonstrate and the blush grows sharper on his cheeks. He tries to hide it with his hands, but she's flinging her chest at his face. _I could do this everyday with him if he'd let me._ Minako laughs at the thought, her happiness bouncing through the room.

* * *

She had absolutely no shame. Was she even a girl? What kind of person acted like this? It took everything I had not to scream. What escaped was an angry growl. "Stop that."

"Stop what?" When she looks up at me, her face is a mask of innocence. If I didn't know her better, it might be enough to fool me. "This?" She rubs her chest again a little faster. She's jumping up and down in her best effort to shove them in my face. "But you wanted to know what happened. This is what happened."

She crawls back onto the bed, advancing on me with that fake innocent expression. The words coming out of her mouth are anything but pure. "There's so much to say. We were both naked. He rubbed me down, like this. Oh, we came so close to -"

I slap my hand over her mouth to shut her up. "Stop. Okay. I get it. Just stop. I don't want to hear anymore."

She bites my hand. The pain is sharp, intense, and immediate. I let go, expecting to see a smile, but there is none. Her face is blank once more. The mirth and playfulness from a moment before is gone. Spending time with her was like a roller coaster. I never knew what to expect. Could never prepare for whatever it was that she would next throw at me.

"Jin, do you want to have sex with me?" Her legs are pulled up to her chest. Her cheek rests on her knees but her eyes are trained on me. They look brown, as they always do when she's unhappy. I noticed that about her.

It feels like a trick question. The forums spoke of them often. Girls like to ask those question even though there is no right answer. Regardless of what you say, she will get angry, so I choose to say nothing. I pull the now, almost-dry blanket back onto the bed to cover us. I'm still half-naked, but getting dressed seems like a bad idea at this point.

Instead, I pull her to my chest, and she doesn't resist. Her warmth envelopes me, whether she wants it to or not. A soft scent of oranges sticks to my nose. "I'm sorry, Mina."

After a moment, she maneuvers herself into a sitting position on my lap, her arms wrapping around my waist. I can feel her sighing and it sounds like she's whispering my name into my chest. "Jin..."

"You destroy me." She's tilting her head up to look at me, lovingly. There is sadness fraying the edges but then she closes her eyes and whispers, "But I love you."

"I love you too."

* * *

 **In persona terms: "You spend a long time with Jin." NC: Rank 8**


	12. Rank 8

**A/N: Then help me. Tell me what you like, what you don't. What part of the story makes you uncomfortable or what doesn't make sense? I love positive comments but negative ones are what drives me to work harder.**

* * *

September 6th 10:34pm Rank 8

"Tell me about Chidori." Minako bursts into our room a little later than our usual time. We'd promise not to talk about our missions, or the members of our team. It was one of the few rules we had with each other. We talked about everything else: food, politics, even the weather. She started decorating the place a few weeks ago, putting in stuffed animals, clothes, and a few personal items. There is a picture of us sitting on the wardrobe. Musashi, a monk she occasionally talked to, had taken the picture the night we went to the summer festival without either of us noticing. Next to it, she'd placed a framed photo she'd taken with her family as a child.

The frame is new but the photo is old and worn. The scene shows her brother throwing up onto her shoes from the right. Her cousin is laughing at him on her left. Mina is crying, her face furrowed into angry tears. Their parents are laughing behind them. It's easy to tell who is who. Minako looks like her father with his brown hair, red eyes, and kind face. Further back is a large roller coaster and a Ferris Wheel.

"It's my favorite memory." That's what she said when I asked her about it.

"Why?"

She was lying on her side so she could watch me while I worked. Her hands are rubbing my back, soothing. It's warm, but not distracting. "My brother had this really blank expression on this face throughout the roller coaster ride and our parents were saying how he was so brave and stuff. They're always praising him for being really mature and responsible. It really got on my nerves, but then he threw up, and everyone started laughing. Minato never let my dad carry him. That was the first time and it was just to the car, but I think it was the first time I thought my brother was really useless.

"So your favorite memory is thinking your brother is useless?"

She laughed, wrapping her arms around me. "No. It was the idea that even the strongest people need help sometimes. My brother was amazing but that day, he was just a weak little boy who couldn't handle the roller coaster. It's my happiest memory. I want to remember him always as someone who needed our family as much as we needed him."

That was a good night. She told me a lot of stories about her family, and she asked me a few about mine. I told her about my first, and a little about the Kirijo group, but nothing about Takaya and Chidori. That was the rule. If I told her anything about them, it would be a betrayal and she didn't ask questions. She let it go.

But now, she is standing in the doorway, ignoring her surroundings and the rules we made for ourselves. She's asking about Chidori.

"No. You know I can't."

She throws her bag on the floor, closing the door behind her. She climbs around the desk and my arm so she's sitting in front of me, staring into my face. She doesn't say a word.

It's bothering me. She knows it. I know she knows it. She knows that I know she knows it. This is her tactic. Minako thinks that with enough discomfort, I'll crack, but I won't, not this time. I can't crack because I don't know what it is she wants. Chidori left without telling either of us anything.

That night had been odd. Takaya had been so angry that we'd let them escape. He was well aware that we couldn't beat them through physical strength. They had more members and better control of their personas. His back up plan was to take them out one by one. He'd sent Chidori into the field and she disappeared for a week, sending messages back only occasionally, and always through Medea.

They had no weaknesses. Not really. Their members covered for one another well. It was impossible to take them out when they always fought in a group. Chidori had gone after Iori, the closest thing Minako had to a friend. He make contact with her before, and Chidori told me he was an easy target. I knew he probably had feelings for her. Most men only engaged her attention when they did, so I expected her to get him alone and kill him. I didn't expect her to go to the dorm and attack him but that's what she did. When we found her again, it was already too late. She'd been captured, and trying to get her back would've been suicide.

I sigh. "Mina, no questions. We agreed on that."

She's pouting, but the expression doesn't fit her. I know her better now. "C'mon. Talk to me. I'll make it worth your while." Her hands rub up against my thighs, and I can feel her teeth nibbling softly on my earlobe. I enjoy her flirting most of the time, but this was blatantly solicitation. To try and seduce me into answering her questions about my team violated every line I'd drawn for her.

She's a small girl. I push her with enough force, that she's thrown to the floor. It looks painful, but I make no move to help her. "No."

* * *

September 13th 10:29pm

"Aragaki told us everything." Her eyes are angry when she shows up. She is visibly shaking with rage.

There was no point in pretending. I could already guess what had happened. Medea was invisible to everyone but Chidori. She probably lost control, and when Medea started strangling her, Aragaki shoved what was left of his pills into her mouth to make her stop. He didn't know about the other method. A fatal injury was just as good of a suppressant but the pills were more stable. They worked better and longer.

I keep my eyes glued to my computer screen in quiet defiance. She didn't ask a question and her statement doesn't need a reply.

"Jin, look at me." I ignore her demand, but then she closes the door, walks the 2 steps to the bed, and punches me in the face. My glasses fall to a pillow I had in my lap. My head flies back, knocking into the wall behind me with a loud bang. I'm about to yell at her, when I notice that there are fat ugly tears brimming in her eyes. They haven't fallen, not quite yet, but they're close. She looks like she's about to burst. Like a volcano.

"Will your persona kill you?"

The truth was maybe. Me and Takaya had stopped taking the pills when this whole thing started. We needed our personas. We couldn't take the suppressants anymore, which made it easy for Moros to kill me. He could appear at any second and strangle me, but he hadn't. A long as Takaya was nearby, I would be okay. Before, lethal injuries were enough to send Moros back, but I couldn't rely on those anymore. Chidori had been taken. She wouldn't be able to heal us. We were stuck, in the middle of a crossroads where trains were coming in every direction. The end was inevitable. I settle on that. "I don't know."

Her eyes tell me that she either doesn't believe me or that there is more to say. "Can I save you?"

"No." My voice is nonchalant, because that is the truth. The truth I've always known. Death was always close at hand. The pills, the requests, Moros. There were a million ways for me to die, and my chances were much higher than the next guy. I was living on borrowed time. Time Chidori's healing had given me, and now Chidori was holed up in a hospital, being watched day and night by SEEs.

She looks like she's about to punch me again, but that would defeat the purpose. Instead, she backs away into a wall and curls up into a ball on the floor. She has her head in her hands but her elbows are in her lap. Her body is rocking back and forth like a child possessed. I can hear her mumbling a string of words over and over again into her palms.

"You can't die. You can't die. You can't die. You can't die. You can't die. You can't die. You can't die. You can't die. You can't die. You can't die. You can't die."

"Mina...?"

She's repeating the words in rapid succession, as if chanting a shinto spell. My hand reaches for her shoulder, but at the slightest touch, she shrieks like a banshee and jumps to her feet. In the next second, she's gone out the door. Shock comes first, and it bolts me in place. I can't move, my body is stuck. The next emotion is panic, and I run after her. There is no sign of where she might've gone. No signal on her phone, no trail to follow, and absolutely no girl in sight. She was just gone.

* * *

The park by the shrine is empty except for a man named Akinari. Minako would prefer to be alone, but Akinari is pleasant enough company and her mind is too clouded to go back to the dorm. They'd met one Sunday when she'd come here looking for Maiko. He held a sickly pallor, and she'd been wary of him falling down unexpectedly. After a few conversations, it was revealed that he had a heart complication. Here was another man who would die soon.

Their conversations had been more than a little one-sided. He was bitter at his predicament, at his inability to lead a normal life. He liked to share in his pain, and often times it soothed her to hear him rant. She wondered if this was what her brother and family felt in the moments before the Shadows took them. He asked for neither pity or compassion, only an ear. Listening to him was simple, easy. It required her to feel nothing in the process.

"Hello, Akinari-san." She greets him as she sits down. He smiles, but says very little. His face is pale, as usual. There is another book in his hands. Often she finds him reading, but today, the pages of the book are blank. She can only see a few words scrawled on the top.

"Hello, Mina-chan...What do you think of a pink alligator?" In their previous conversations, Akinari contemplated writing a story about a pink alligator, but she did not honestly believe in his resolve, but here he was, putting in the effort for his idea.

"Bright, bubble gum, or subdued?" Her voice is serious, as if the question is the most important in the world. Akinari smiles. He liked this about her. That she neither laughed at his dream, nor pushed him too hard. It was as if he was talking to a mirror, or an apparition. He could almost believe it in this shrine.

"Bright...maybe like a neon..."

Minako smiles, but it doesn't reach her eyes. "Sounds a little silly."

"Yes...I suppose...it does, doesn't it..." He writes down bubble gum in his notebook, circling it twice.

"Many things in life are silly...aren't they?" This gives him pause and Akinari puts the pencil down, placing a light hand on her shoulder. She flinches, violently, but doesn't push it off.

"Is...something wrong?" He has never seen her this way before. She's always been a bit of an airhead, distracted, like there is always something else on her mind. But it is much worse today. Her eyes and her heart appear confined elsewhere. Trapped.

Minako waits a long time before answering him. "I'd...like to hear how far you've come in your story Akinari-san."

The story is about a pink alligator born in a green forest. In this forest, he is ugly and hated because of his color. However, a canary takes pity on the alligator, and is willing to sing to it. They are happy, for a short while, but the alligator is unable to hunt. Its pink color always alert its prey to flee. So one day, in a tragic accident the bird is accidentally swallowed and killed.

"What do you think, Mina-chan?" Akinari is watching her intently. Constructive criticism, is an author's favorite sort of feedback after all, but unfortunately, she couldn't find any for him.

"Do you think the bird only chose to be with the alligator because of pity?" All around them are signs of Autumn: falling leaves, scarves, children in puffy sweaters. All around them were signs of change and the progression of time. Soon, it would be winter, and all these signs would fade to discolored versions of themselves. White.

"No...I don't...think...that would be...the only reason...but I can't think of another." Perhaps it would be nice to add a new element to his story.

Minako watches him for a moment, taking in this dying man's features. He's a little older than Jin, but not quite an adult. There is a naivety on his face that comes from someone who has not seen much to question about. A tired confusion of never knowing where to look. She takes off her scarf, wrapping it around his neck. She would knit herself another one later with Bebe. "Maybe the bird fell in love with the alligator. In their forest of green, maybe the bird was enraptured by the one color that she never saw elsewhere."

Akinari is momentarily shocked by her gesture, but accepts the gift. The scarf is warm, clearly handmade. There are obvious mistakes in several places, but that makes the gift all the more special. "Yes...ugly to some...but to the bird...the brightest of all..." The dying man nods, coughing once or twice into his hands. This will be enough for now. He would think more on this idea in a few hours.

"Do you mind...sitting with me...for a little while longer...?"

Minako offers her lap for the man to lay his head, and he falls asleep quickly in her warmth. Akinari would die soon. She could practically see the clock that floated above his head, counting down the days to the end of his life. His death would not hurt her, not like Minato's did and Jin's eventually would. When would he die? How? Jin, whom she'd given a piece of herself she could never get back. He was going to die, at any moment because his persona was not like hers. His persona would kill him, and she could not stop it. No, she could not stop him from dying. So what could she do?

 _"_ Minato...What can I do for him?"

She's staring into thin air, she knows this, but she can see his face. This is not the face that she remembers, but an older one that she knows he will never wear. His hair covers his eyes like it always did, leaving only his nose and mouth out to the observer. He's kneeling so that if she reaches straight out, she can almost touch his face. She knows she will never reach him.

 _Live. Live your life with enough happiness to make up for the happiness that he can't have._

 _"_ I can't. I'm trying, but I can't. I don't know how to be happy without you. How can I be happy all alone?"

 _You're not alone. You have the friends you've made this year. All the people you've met have given you a piece of themselves. If you die, those pieces die with you._

"And me? What about the piece of me I've given Jin? It will die with him."

 _Minako, dying for someone is easy. Living for someone is much harder. Can you live for him?_

"I...I don't know."

 _Try. Mom and Dad don't want to see you yet. I don't either. Use the pieces these people have given you and fill up that hole in your heart that we've left behind. It's not wrong to let us go. All we want is for you to be happy._

* * *

 **NC: Rank 9**


	13. Rank 9

September 15th Waning Crescent 9:10pm

Laughing. She's sitting across the street from me, talking and laughing with Aragaki Shinjiro. The day after she'd run away from me, she didn't come back. We didn't talk about what happened, nor did she answer any of my messages. I rarely spent time in the apartment anymore. There would be no point without her there.

The time that she withheld from me, she poured into Aragaki. They went out for dinner, to walk the dog, and sometimes just talking in the kitchen of the dorms. If I didn't know any better, I would think they were in love.

They're too far for me to hear what they're saying, but I don't particularly want to know. Whatever it is won't make me feel any better. She ran away, clearly avoiding me and whatever the problem was. Like a weak, spineless coward. This girl wasn't worth my time. I repeated the words to myself almost daily, but they did little to improve my mood.

I turn to go home, back to Takaya. As I round the alley to our apartment, I run into the man talking to a child with sandy brown hair. I recognize him immediately. "I'm sorry sir. I didn't see you."

"Ah... The little Amada boy." The youngest member of SEEs, and the only one to have never seen us. They didn't bring him to bunker the night we revealed ourselves. He knew our names and purpose, but our faces were a mystery.

"You...know me?" His face is pulled into a frown, likely searching his memory for some clue of how they knew each other. He would find nothing. Takaya has never seen the boy until now.

"Oh yes. I live a block from where you used to, before your house collapsed."

Amada glue his eyes to the ground, clearly still a sore subject. His mother died in that collapse and the Kirijo group covered it up. A little recreation during the Dark Hour and a few paid off cops could go a long way in this society. No one would trust the word of a boy against the field of evidence. No one except the boy himself would trust what he'd seen.

"Pity... what happened to your mother. Did they ever catch the teenagers who did it?" Takaya's voice is filled with an innocent curiosity. He was playing this kid like a fiddle.

"Teenagers...? What teenagers?" Amada's eyes are suddenly sharp, staring at Takaya with such an intensity, it would scare a lesser man. Takaya's fake expression of surprise only grows stronger.

"I saw a group of three teenagers going into your home the night of the explosion. I remember it perfectly. A girl with bright red hair, and two boys. One of them had white hair and the other wore some form of hat. I couldn't quite see their faces, but it left an impression on me since I thought it was odd that three teenagers would blow up a house just for fun."

The kid's face is pale, and his eyes are wide. His lips move but no words come out. The truth of what happened that night is dawning on him. He runs off without another word to Takaya. My friend watches the child go with a wicked grin on his face. He smiles to me as I walk up behind him. "That boy will do our work for us."

* * *

September 18th Rank 9

A typhoon has hit the city. Minako can feel the winds hitting her like a car. The rain that pelts her skin feels like stones falling from the sky. She won't make it back to the dorm. It's too far, and the rainstorm is too strong. Where could she go? The apartment is the only thing that comes to mind. She bursts through the door, soaking wet.

The room is warm, but her body feels cold. Was she dying? The thought isn't scary. A little comforting, maybe. There's a vague idea in the back of her mind, that Jin might be here so she can die in his arms.

"Big sister...Are you okay?" The voice is foreign. Most likely one of the other people who are living in the apartment. She's about to turn around and tell him that she's fine, when her body hits the wooden floor. All around her are panicked voices, but none of them register except the first one who asked if she was alright. He is just a little boy, no more than 11 years old. She can see that he's wearing glasses, under curly black hair. It is the last thing she sees before she sinks into darkness.

Warm, her skin is warm. That's good. It was cold earlier. In her dreams, she visits the Velvet Room, but it is brief. She can barely get a hello to Theo before she is pushed back to reality.

When she opens her eyes, all she can register is that everything looks sideways, like everything is stuck to the wall. She's in her bed, wrapped in a million layers blankets like a burrito. They are wrapped so tightly around her in fact, that she can barely move, so she chooses not to. Instead, she looks around the dark room, trying to get a handle on her surroundings.

It is dark, much later than when she first arrived at the apartment. The sound of heavy rain batters the ceiling high above her. "What happened?"

"Finally awake, you idiot?" There is movement below and behind her. What she'd originally thought was her pillow is actually Jin's lap. She bolts straight up, her forehead hitting the bottom of his chin.

"Gah!" His head snaps back from the impact and he rolls away from her, cradling the injury.

"I'm sorry! Are you okay?" She's about to reach for him when she realizes the sleeves of her shirt is covering her hands. This wasn't her uniform. Someone changed her clothes while she was asleep. "Why am I wearing this?"

"You showed up completely soaked and running a fever so I changed you into clean clothes. Ah shit, I think I bit my tongue." Jin is licking around his mouth, looking for blood, but her mind is still focused on the fact that he changed her into these pajamas. This callous and inconsiderate man had spent the afternoon taking care of her.

"Thank you..."

"You're welcome." He sighs, giving up on checking the injury to his jaw. "I want to talk."

* * *

Her eyes flinch, but she sweeps it away quickly, placing a sweet smile on her face. "Why? We haven't been together in so long. Let's do something else."

I can feel her fingers move with a practiced motion underneath my shirt. She's trying to distract me, but I have more self-control than most people. My body urges me to make the move, and I grab her hand to stop her. "That's not going to work today. You ran away from me right into another man's arms. I've seen you with Aragaki."

Emotions flit across her face: Panic, sadness, and anger take up residence behind her expression. She's losing control, but the smile never fades. "I didn't. Shinjiro is just a friend. There's nothing going on. C'mon. Don't be jealous. I've missed you. Kiss me..." Her lips brush my throat, her hair caressing the injury to my jaw. It's almost enough to break me.

"No, Mina. We're going to talk. Stop it." We wrestle for a few minutes but Minako has the upper hand. I'm taller, but she's far stronger than me. As she's about to pin me on my stomach, my teeth rakes across her wrist, causing her to let go. She breaks her hold and I twist my way on top, holding her down with my weight.

"Ooh, I didn't know you play dirty like that. I like it." The laughter is too high-pitched, fake. She's trying too hard, and it makes her words awkward.

"I'm going to die soon, Mina. That's a fact. Are you going to run from that fact forever?"

"What are you talking about? I'm fine. Everyone dies. That's normal." Her head is turned to the side, so her bangs are covering her eyes and she doesn't need to look at my face.

I lean my head into her chest so her heart is pounding against my forehead. It's fast, and the pulse is so hard that it's enough to cause me the barest of pain. "I probably won't make it to your birthday."

The laughter immediately dies on her lips. She finally turns her heads in my direction, and the pain there is unmistakable."But that's..."

"February 28th. Right... Minako Arisato, I need you to talk to me... Are you going to be with me until the end or should we pretend this never happened? I can do whatever you want. Just tell me."

Her eyes are squeezed shut but the tears roll from them anyway, soaking into her hair. "Jin...I can't do this again. I can't watch the people I love die and then move on. I haven't... Moonlight Bridge. My brother... My parents... It's been ten years Jin... I haven't even learned to live without them! How... How am I supposed to live without you?! I can't! I CAN'T!"

The words choke her and she starts hyperventilating, bordering on a panic attack. I quickly release her but she only curls back into a ball, protecting herself from the world. From me. "Mina. You're full of life. You don't even need to try for people to like you. There are men falling over themselves to make you love them. You'll be fine."

"Ten years, Jin. Do you know how long ten years is...? There wasn't a single day in those ten years where I didn't think about them." She's digging her palms so hard into her eyes, that I'm starting to fear she might hurt herself. "I don't know how to be happy. I'm just going through the motions! There is nothing in this world that I wanted to do until I learned how to fight Shadows, but soon, that will be gone too. What am I supposed to do after that...? Tell me... Everyone in this world belongs to something! Someone... Who do I belong to...? Everything I loved is dead. The man I love is going to die in less than a year. What do you want me to do?!"

When I go to pry her hands from her eyes, there are bruised red rings around them, framing her pain. "I'm sorry..."

"Why can't I save you...?" She's beating into my chests with her fists, but her attacks barely hold any strength. I wrap my arms around her and it only takes a few seconds for her tears to soak into my clothes. She couldn't save me, and I couldn't save her. The over-looking sickness would never fade: my death and her pain. There was no salvation for either of us. "I'm sorry..."

"Jin...I can't lose anyone else." She's clinging to me like a child, desperate, all-consuming. I rub her back in my best efforts to soothe her, but she shows no sign of calming down.

"I'm sorry..."

"Jin...Why does it need to end like this?"

"I don't know."

Her cries are slowing down to a sniffle but her eyes are almost completely bloodshot when she looks at me. Her nose is running and her entire face is wet. This is quite possibly the ugliest I've ever seen her. I place the lightest kiss I can manage on her forehead. It's sloppy, and unromantic, but her hiccup-sobs disappear. Her voice is barely audible when she whispers, "I don't want to lose you..."

"I know... I'm sorry..."

This was only the beginning of the pain I would cause her.

* * *

October 4th Full Moon Dark Hour

I remember the first time I fired a gun, Takaya was holding my hands. He was so big and strong, everything I wanted to be. I didn't like the smell of gun powder. It reminded me of my days in the Kirijo Group. The bang was loud, and it hurt my ears. I hated almost everything about that moment except Takaya's praise and affection.

Now, the smell of gunpowder is familiar. It's the smell of our house. It's probably what all my clothes smell like. I don't even notice it anymore.

The ringing echoes off the walls, grinding on my brain. My eyes are glued on the scene. There's a circle of blood on Aragaki Shinjiro's coat, and it only grows larger with each passing second. The man is down on one knee, but his arms are still spread wide, protecting the child behind him. A child who had only been trying to kill him a few moments prior.

"Shinji!" I can hear Sanada scream, and it registers that he's close by. For the first time in a long time, the sight of him brings me no anger. After tonight, Minako will go to him, and I will not stop her. Watching her break down in my arms was enough. I couldn't make her happy. There wasn't enough time. **I** wasn't enough to ease her pain.

"Why must your friends always ruin a joyous moment?" Takaya sighs and we turn to go. "Perhaps another time then..."

Minako would cry for him tonight and it would be my fault. She was right. I destroyed her.

* * *

 **NC: Rank 10**


	14. Rank 10

**Warning: Offensive language, sensitive issues, and suicide. Reader Discretion is advised.**

* * *

October 5th Wanning Gibbous Rank Reverse

The grip on her Evoker tightens at the sight of me. Her enemy or her lover, it was clear I couldn't be both. There is dirt on her from her fight with the Shadows, and blood from the man she watched die. I can imagine how she looked in that moment, with her face pressed to his chest. Was she crying, screaming, or some combination of the two? She swings the Evoker to my forehead the moment I'm within range.

"Why…?"

I don't answer her. What she asks doesn't warrant any answer. Why did I let him die? Why did Takaya want to kill him? Or why did I come? Perhaps she understands because she changes her question.

"Was there any real reason to kill him?"

"Of course. He's the enemy. Just like you and the rest of your friends. We're going to kill all of them Mina. Aragaki was just the beginning. The kid was supposed to die with him, but we'll take what we can get."

"Will you kill me too?" She says the words slowly, so her voice doesn't shake. There are tears rolling down her face and I desperately want to hold her, but I know I can't. I've already come too far. She can't ever come back to me. She'll fall in love again. Maybe with Sanada. Maybe with that weird blond who lives in an alley. It doesn't matter as long as it isn't me.

"You know I've already tried to kill you once. I probably will again soon." I say the words with a grin that feels unfamiliar, like my mouth is moving on its own. I couldn't kill her. I came to this meeting unarmed: My Evoker was sitting in my suitcase at home.

"... Haven't you done enough? Does the Dark Hour really mean that much to you?"

I shrug, holding her gaze with as much nonchalance as I can fake. "None of it really matters to me. You know that. This is all for Takaya. Me and him are going to die soon, together. The only one who could have save us from that fate was Chidori, and SEEs has got her locked up."

"If I free her, will you stop? Will the three of you go live your lives in peace and let us do our job?"

I sigh, wrapping my fingers around the front of her Evoker. She wouldn't hurt me, despite her threats, but I had no qualms about hurting myself. "No. If we wanted her back, we would've gone for her, but we didn't. I think if we went for her now, she might not even leave with us. She's been tricked by your friend Iori. She's useless to us until she wakes up from her happy little love dream. We might need to kill him next."

Her hand drops from the Evoker, and it falls to the ground with a clang. "Jin... Don't kill anyone else...Please...I'm begging you."

"Why do you care so much Mina? You said those people weren't your friends, so why are you trying so hard to protect them? Were you lying? Was that another one of your little acts to get me to like you?"

She runs up to close the distance between us. Grabbing my shirt into her hands, she's practically shaking me when she screams. "He had a future, Jin! People needed him! Do you understand that?! People loved him! He was like a brother to Akihiko. And what about Ken?! He's going to blame himself for the rest of his life! He's just a child! And you could have stopped him! You could have helped him! He…" She lets go of my jacket, falling to her knees onto the docks. Sobs rack her body.

A part of me wants to comfort her, but I'm more logical than that. Every thought is telling me that I should leave. There isn't any reason to stay here with this weeping girl. She will never come back to me after this. All that's left is to salt the wounds and make sure they never close. "Did you love him?"

"Why would you ask me that?…I love you... Its always been you." Her voice is strained with emotion. Like she's trying to get more words out than is physically possible.

"Do you? Are you sure you weren't just using me as a replacement for your brother?" Her eyes grow wide at my accusation, but she doesn't respond. Maybe because she knows this is the truth. I kneel down so I can hold her face in my hands. She doesn't make any move to stop me. "Your eyes fade out sometimes when you're looking at me, almost like you don't see me. You whisper his name when you're asleep. Admit it, Mina. You don't love me, you never did. The one you're always looking for is your brother." I lean in close, so my lips are brushing against her ear. "Freak. You disgust me."

I push her into the ground with as much strength as I can muster. She makes no move to protect herself, falling hard onto her side. Her face registers no pain but I can see the ugly scratches on her hand when she moves. Blood smears onto her sweater. Her eyes are wide and blank, detached. I'm already walking away when I hear her whisper. "You're just as bad…"

My logical brain tells me I'm making the wrong choice. I should leave. Whatever she's about to say will only making things worse. I turn around, "What did you say?"

"You're in love with Takaya." She's on all fours, and then she's on her feet, staring up at me with such fury I'm almost scared. "You never loved me either. I was just your replacement because you know he'll never want you back. Did he make those burns on your back? Is he the reason you have a scar on your thigh? Or was that someone else? What kind of man did you let touch you? Did a big hairy guy bend you over-"

I punch her across the face, and she practically flies back to the ground. There's blood trailing down to her chin, and I can see her lip is cut badly. When she looks back up at me, the sneer on her face is cruel. "Did I hit a soft spot? I know you like men. Does that disgust you too? So what if I loved my brother? You're just as bad. At least my brother didn't treat me like shit." She wipes the blood off with her hand, struggling to pull herself back onto her feet.

The words hit like a ton of bricks. She's been a manipulative little vixen since the day I've met her. A thousand attacks in her arsenal, and she will always find the one to cause the most damage. I let out a loud breath and smile. "You're right. You're just my replacement for Takaya. But I don't need you anymore. It's just me and him now since Chidori is gone. I get him all to myself. Get it? He's the one I'll always want."

The tears and anger have all dried on her face, leaving a blank slate. She reaches into her bag, and pulls out a small, crumpled package, throwing it at my feet. "Congratulations, I hope the two of you live out your short pathetic lives in happiness."

She grabs her Evoker and walks away from the dock without turning back and I'm instantly reminded of the night she left me on Moonlight Bridge. She was once again someone I didn't know.

The weeks that flew by afterward is mostly a blank in my mind. A lot of it is spent working. Takaya rarely came home and even when he did, it was mostly to sleep. I saw Mina's name show up on the Revenge Site a few times at first, and then they sprung up like a hurricane overnight. Dozens, almost a hundred requests with her name on it. It only took a couple minutes to realize it was because of Akihiko and an epidemic of jealousy. That was good.

I left our apartment as it was. Most if it was her stuff, and if she cared about it, she would go back for it. I kept paying rent, just in case. I took the photograph she'd made of us, and the gift she threw at me on the dock: A set of real bullets for my Evoker. _To keep you safe, when I can't._

* * *

 _XXX-XX-XXXX_

 _Her fingers trail over stone, canvas, paper, paint, everything within sight. "Did you miss it?"_

 _"No. I'm trying... to remember... what I was thinking about when I made all this."_

 _I shrug. We'll never know. She never explained her art to us, and we never asked. Takaya leans against the wall to smile at us. "Don't think too much Chidori. You must rest. Tomorrow, we will meet them at Tartarus, and you will get your chance to kill them for what they did to you."_

 _She follows me back into my room and crawls onto my bed. The lights are already off, but there's a natural glow to her eyes, like a cat. I boot up my computer station and it's almost enough to delude me into thinking that the past few months didn't happen. Chidori never left, and I never met Minako. Every day is just the missions, my computer, and sleep. Chidori breaks the spell. "...What happened with you and the girl?"_

 _I pause for a few minutes as I wonder how to answer her. I could lie, but I don't see the point. "...I pushed her away."_

 _She doesn't answer, and I almost believe she's fallen asleep when she reaches out to grab my jacket, calling my attention. When I turn to look at her, I can feel her life pour into me, healing my wounds, both new and old. She's curled onto her side, watching me through heavily-lidded eyes. "Did she...make you afraid...?"_

 _Her eyes tells me she understands and it's almost enough to make me laugh. "Yes..."_

 _"...Why is it so painful?" Her whisper is sad, and already she's different from the emotionless, callous woman that I know. This Chidori no longer belonged to me and Takaya. A part of her now stood next to the boy from SEEs and we would never be able to reach her._

 _"I don't know. But this is what Takaya tried to teach us. I guess neither of us were very good students." I sigh, sitting against the bed. The grip on my jacket loosens and she wraps her arms around my head instead._

 _"Do you regret letting her go?"_

 _"Sometimes. But I don't think it matters. Everything is going to end soon." I climb into bed next to her, and it's the first time in years we've been this close. "Don't think too much. You can do whatever you want Chidori. If you want Iori, go to him, run away with him. That's what you told me about Minako, isn't it?"_

 _She nods, pushing herself next to me. We've been together so long I'd forgotten the girl she'd once been: An innocent child pulled along into schemes bigger than she could understand. She'd been used by the Kirijo Group, and then by Takaya. She never had any real choice. "Are you going to leave?"_

 _"No... I can't. Do you remember the first time you met Takaya?" I can feel her nod against my arm, and I continue. "We would've died if he didn't save us that night after the explosion. I can't, I won't let him die alone."_

 _She sighs but doesn't respond. I feel her changing her position next to me, and I pull her into a hug. "We live and die together, Chidori. That's what makes us family." I close my eyes, match my breathing to hers, and sleep._

* * *

January 31st Full Moon Dark Hour Rank 10

Chidori is dead. She gave up her life to save Iori's. None of it surprised me. When I think back on it, the two of us had a lot in common. We both fell in love with the enemy and failed miserably at it. She tried to push Iori away, tried to kill him too, but he came back and proved how much he loved her, just like Minako did with me. But Chidori was stronger than me. She chose love, and death. My sad, lonely little sister.

"What are you waiting for?! Finish me off!" I scream the words. My body was beat, too worn from the drugs and fighting to respond. They won the battle but it was much too late . Takaya was already at the top of the Tower of Demise, waiting for Nyx to arrive for the Fall.

"C'mon, let's go." Kirijo urges her team forward, and they follow her to move around me. So they weren't going to kill me after all.

"Arisato?" She hasn't moved, her eyes focused on my broken form. I'm sitting on the floor. No energy to even stand up. The rest of SEEs is watching her expectantly.

"Go, I'll be there in a minute."

"But..." Sanada is about to protest, but her glare is enough to scare him off.

Once everyone is gone, she squats in front of me, the two of us alone once again. She presses her Evoker to her head, and pulls the trigger. A persona I've never seen appears and I can feel the wounds on my body heal. I'm once again reminded of Chidori. I've only ever had two women in my life, and they both made it a habit to try and fix me.

"What was the point of that? We're all going to die in this tower tonight." My eyes are fixated on my hands in front of me. There is blood and dirt on them, but any wounds underneath are gone.

"Do you have the bullets I gave you?" The random question surprises me and I raise my eyes to look at her. Why was she here? Why were we having this conversation? Didn't we say everything we wanted to say? I thought I did an excellent job of pushing myself out of her life. Her smile is sad, but warm. Oh god, how I missed her. Why was she so different? So odd? So very impossible to read? What kind of sane person did the things she did?

One of Minako's bullets hang on a chain around my neck. The rest are sitting in my pocket. I didn't use a single one. I didn't need an Evoker to kill people. I hold the chain up for her to see.

"I won't move. If we're all going to die because of Nyx anyway, I'd rather you be the one to kill me. Shoot." She throws her Evoker onto my lap, leaving herself defenseless. My eyes watch her, shocked. This can't be a trap. What would be the point? Her friends have already defeated me. This entire exchange was pointless, so what was she trying to do?

"...Have you forgotten how I treated you on the docks...? We're enemies, Mina... Go. Leave."

She shakes her head, and she reaches out so the tips of her fingers are touching my face. "I remember...You were right about my brother, and I deserved that punch. I shouldn't have said those things to you."

I sigh, leaning my head back to look at the ceiling where I knew everyone would be waiting for her. None of this mattered anymore. Not Takaya, not the Fall, not SEEs. Right here in this space, it was just the two of us, and that was it. "It's okay. We both know everything we said was true, and I deserved it for being an asshole."

Minako smiles, and kisses me softly on the cheek. When she pulls away, I wrap my arms around her, pressing my lips to hers. The taste is familiar and nostalgic. I spent months without this, and the feel of it rushes back to consume me. I wanted her with me that night on the docks, when Chidori died, when I thought the world was going to end. I wanted her so badly it hurt, but this wasn't right. This wasn't like her. She wasn't here for me. She was here for revenge. The end to the Dark Hour, the Shadows, and all the nightmares was waiting for her just two floors up. I pull away, and push her towards the stairs. "Go. Save the world."

Her eyes drink me in, drawing me into her memory. She wraps her arms around my neck for one last hug when she whispers, "I'm not going to kill Takaya. When I win, I'm going to find you again. And I'll make sure you pick me this time." She runs up the stairs, pausing for only a few seconds to look at me one final time, and I know her promises won't matter. He won't live to see tomorrow, and I'll never see her again either.

I pull one of her bullets from my pocket and load it into my Evoker. "You're an idiot." I whisper, and the only things to answer me are the strangled cries of the Shadows from down below.

"Takaya is family. You don't get to choose family." I hold the Evoker to my head, and I take a long breath. Memories flash through my mind. The day I broke out from the ruins of the Kirijo Lab, sleeping next to Chidori, meeting Minako on Hemlin, kissing her on the dock, and then a dream. The four of us are sitting on the roof of the apartment, laughing, talking. There were only three people in my life, and they didn't even get the chance to be friends.

"I picked you. I chose to love you..." The cries from the Shadows are louder now, crawling up behind me. Soon, they'll overwhelm me, and my body will be torn to shreds. I wrap one hand around the bullet on my chest, and the other pulls the trigger.

* * *

 **A/N: I want to thank the 30 people or so whose read from beginning to end. This was originally intended to be a Hermit social link for Minako but it ended up being more like a Fool social link for Jin. I didn't like this couple before I wrote this story but they've grown on me. Funny how writing about something can actually make you like it more. Anyway, an epilogue might show up at some point because I have a lot of random scraps left about Jin's days in the Kirijo group and a Christmas date. But I doubt it. Special thanks to Rivai, Shinrai, Elana, Cube Addict1, Metal Vile, LaniCherri101, Proxy Saga, and all the unnamed guests who stopped by. I hope to see you at my next story.**


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